Key To My Heart
by khriku29
Summary: Maryx is a cold-hearted fighter, whose rough past has scarred her badly. After living with King Mickey for a year, she's sent on a mission with his friends, Sora and Riku. They're dying to know what happened in her past, but will she tell them? RikuXOC
1. Princess Maryx?

You sighed loudly as you flopped down on your bed. Closing your eyes, you inhaled and exhaled deeply several times before opening them again and running your hands through your long, straight black hair. King Mickey had trained you for much longer and harder than usual, and you had retired worn out and exhausted.

You had been living in Disney Castle for about a year and six months, after the King had taken you in when he found yout. In that time, you had trained with the King and stayed with him. However, King Mickey had restricted you to certain parts of the castle. The only people you had ever met were King Mickey, Queen Minnie, Daisy and Donald Duck, Goofy, Chip and Dale, and the broom servants. For some reason, today's training had been intense. _'Almost as if he was testing my limits'._ You smiled at this thought, thinking how you had refused to show weakness the whole time, and summoned your weapon, Broken Pieces. It was fairly similar to the keyblade Soul Eater, except it had a black and white pattern made to look like shards. Your smile was quickly replaced for a frown, however. _'Testing my limits for what?'_

At that moment a servant hopped into your room, spun around twice and bowed before exiting again. This meant the King or Queen wanted to see you. Ignoring the ache you felt when you jumped of your bed, you made your way to the Castle Library.

In the Library, as you assumed, you found King Mickey waiting for you. "Ah, Maryx!" he cried as you walked up to him. "I hope I wasn't bein' too hard on ya in trainin'!"

"Not at all, Your Majesty," you smiled. "Did you want to speak to me?"

King Mickey lost his grin and it was replaced with a serious expression. "Yes I did, Maryx. Actually, I have quite a big favour to ask of ya," he added.

_ 'A favour? He wants me to do him a favour? Why?'_

The King began to pace back and forth. "It's like this, Maryx," he started. "Have I ever told ya 'bout the six keys?"

You frowned. "No, I don't think so, Your Majesty."

"Well, there are other worlds, as ya know." You nodded, wishing he would get to the point. "And ya know all there is to know 'bout Kingdom Hearts." You nodded again, ruefully recalling the hours the king made you study about Kingdom Hearts, Heartless, and Organization XIII when you weren't training. "Hidden in those worlds are six keys. When all six keys are pointed at Kingdom Hearts a keychain will be formed! This keychain must be attached to the weapon of the Princess of Darkness. When this is done, the princess's heart will glow, and the light in her heart will overcome her darkness. That light will then destroy Xemnas and all the other villains who have tried or are tryin' to use Kingdom Hearts for bad deeds, such as Maleficent! I need ya to help two good friends of mine, Sora and Riku to find the keys and accomplish this task."

"Wait, wait," you interrupted. "Why do I have to help these two? Isn't there anyone else who can do this?" You knew this sounded selfish, but you liked your life now. You didn't want anything to change.

King Mickey looked you in the eye. "No, Maryx, there is no one else who can do this." He paused for a moment before saying, "because you are the Princess of Darkness."


	2. Meeting Sora and Riku

**RECAP:**

King Mickey looked you in the eyes. "No, Maryx, there is no one else who can do this." He paused for a moment before saying, "because you are the Princess of Darkness."

**STORY STARTS:**

"I'm a princess."

"Yup!"

"I'm a princess?"

"That's right!"

"Uh-huh, okay, I'm a princess…I also like to do highland dancing in a frilly magenta swimsuit while playing the ukulele."

"Maryx…"

"Sorry…" You honestly couldn't help it. "But honestly, Your Majesty, a PRINCESS? How can I be one? I don't have royal blood in me!"

"Ya don't, that's true," King Mickey admitted. "But your Keyblade, Broken Pieces, is the one that chooses who the Dark Princess is, like the Keyblade chooses its wielder."

"So, I suppose, I HAVE to do this?"

King Mickey sighed. "Maryx, ya don't really have much of a choice! In fact, you're meetin' Sora and Riku tonight."

"WHAT? TONIGHT?" '_How could he only tell me that I'm meeting people that I'm going to spend who-knows-how-many-days with tonight NOW?'_ "But...but…why are you only telling me this NOW?"

"Calm down." The King wasn't ruffled at all by the fact that you were ready to smash something. "I'll be takin' ya to the Destiny Islands tonight to meet them. In fact, we'll be leavin' in about an hour, since the trip in the Gummi Ship is seven hours long. If I were you, I'd probably take a little nap."

"But…oh, okay,' you slumped your shoulders. "Like you said, I don't a choice." You turned and raised your arms to summon a portal to go to your room, but then lowered them and faced the King again. "Anything else you'd like to break to me Your Majesty? I have an identical twin, a secret ability to grow an eye on my forehead? Maybe you're going to surprise me with a man-eating dog or two?"

The King looked at you and you sighed. "Alright, alright," you grumbled, turning again and making a portal. As you stepped through you added, "But this doesn't mean I have to like them!"

* * *

** *That night***

**Riku's POV**

You rubbed your shoulder on the spot where Sora had just hit you with his wooden sword and glared at his grinning face. "Can't you hit me in any other spot?"

Sora rubbed the back of his head, considering this. _Perfect_. While he was off guard, you ran and whacked him you sword. "Too slow," you said triumphantly.

"Awwww," Sora whined, flopping down on the sand. "You need to stop doing that."

You grinned and sat down beside him. You had been waiting on the island for some time for King Mickey and the 'friend' that would be accompanying you and Sora on your new adventure, and to pass the time the two of you had started fighting each other with your toy swords. Mickey hadn't said much about the guy who would be your companion for the mission - all you knew was that he had a keyblade, was sixteen years old, and had been living with King Mickey for a year or so. "I wonder what's taking the King so long," Sora commented.

"You dragged me out here even though we were still early, remember?" you reminded him.

Two shadowy figures made their way to you, and you instantly recognized the shorter one's figure. You jumped to your feet to face the big-eared king. "Mickey!" you said, hugging him. Sora got up too and hi-fived him. "Hi Your Majesty!" Sora greeted.

"I hope you two aren't plannin' on fightin' the Heartless and Nobodies with THOSE swords, fellas!" Mickey laughed..

"Yeah, because you're not going to get very far fighting with wooden swords," said another voice. You glanced past King Mickey to see a tanned girl with long, thick, straight black hair and beautiful dark brown eyes standing behind him, looking like she wanted to be anywhere but here.

You looked at her in surprise for a moment or two. '_Our partner's...a girl?'_

King Mickey simply smiled and shook his head. "Boys, this is Maryx. She's gonna be helpin' you two. Maryx, this is Sora, and that's Riku!"

"Hi Maryx!" Sora grinned and waved.

Maryx barely smiled back. "Hey," she muttered, crossed her arms and looked away. You didn't offer a greeting. Mickey was still smiling and chuckled a little. "Well, I gotta run, fellas. I know," he chided as you opened your mouth to protest, "you want me to stay a lil' longer, but you three already know what to do. And besides, you should start goin' to the next world straight away. I'm really sorry."

"But Your Majes…mmmmph! Ay iiiiuuu!" Sora's voice muffled as you clamped your hand over his mouth. "Not a problem, Mickey," you grinned, pretending to be oblivious to Sora's muffled protests. "We'll be fine, we know what to do." King Mickey nodded and you released Sora, who immediately started gasping for breath.

"Oh yeah! Riku, Sora, can I just tell you somethin'…." The King added, walkingg a little further from Maryx and gesturing for you and Sora follow. He started to talk in a hushed voice, making you lean in and listen. "Maryx can be very touchy and sarcastic, but don't push her out, okay? Trust me, after a while she'll be nicer, if you put up with her."

You and Sora nodded in unison. "Oh, and she's only VERY nasty if she's in pain, upset, traumatized, things like that. Otherwise she's just…sarcastic."

Sora nodded again. "Got it, Your Majesty."

"Yeah," you said, though in your mind you felt doubtful. "We'll try our best."

King Mickey sighed with relief. "Thanks, fellas." He left you two and pulled Maryx aside to say something to her.

_ 'Mickey didn't tell us that our companion would be a girl,' _you thought, watching as the King talked to her and she rolled her eyes.

_ 'And he didn't say she was hot.'_

**Your P.O.V.**

"Maryx, I know you don't want to do this, but just try to be a lil pa…"

"Your Majesty, we went over this already," you said, rolling your eyes. "And you know I'm not really going to be very patient. So there's not much point in telling me, is there? Buuuuut," you sighed, "I'm promise I'll try not to be TOO bad."

King Mickey shook his head. "I suppose that's the best I'll be gettin' out you, isn't it?" You immediately felt terrible, but when he focused his gaze on you again you saw amusement in his eyes. He waved his arm towards the two boys, who were now standing in front of an expensive-looking Gummi Ship. "You'll be travellin' in their Gummi Ship, okay?"

"Okay," you said, a bit hesitantly. You could already tell you would be in a pretty bad mood most of the time. Not because you didn't like these two. '_That would be ridiculous. I'm just feeling shy because I don't know them...And when I feel shy, I snap at people. A lot.'_

If the King had noticed your hesitancy, he didn't show it. Instead, he led you back to the boys and then began to leave. "Good luck, you three! See you a few months!"

"Thanks, Your Majesty!" Sora grinned and ran up the stairs into the Gummi Ship. '_Man, he grins a lot…' _you thought._ ''He almost reminds me of Ry -'_

"See you later, Mickey," Riku said before following Sora's lead, interrupting your thoughts.

"Bye, Riku," King Mickey said.

When you had reached the top of the stairs you smiled at the King. "Bye Your Majesty."

King Mickey smiled back. "Bye, Maryx." With that, he turned and started walking back to his own ship. Glancing once more at King Mickey's retreating form, you headed up the stairs leading into the Gummi Ship.


	3. Bad Start!

**RECAP:**

When they had reached the top of the stairs you smiled at the King. "Bye Your Majesty."

King Mickey smiled back."Bye, Maryx." With that, he turned and started walking back to his own ship. Glancing once more at King Mickey's retreating form, you headed up the stairs leading into the Gummi Ship.

**STORY STARTS:**

Inside the Gummi Ship, you took a good look around. It was different from the King's ship, way more flash and much bigger. '_I don't know much about Gummi Ships, but even I know this cost a lot of munny,'_ you thought. In front of the driver's seat, where Riku was sitting, were hundreds of buttons and levers, a large screen, and a larger lever that looked like it was used for steering. Along the sides of this area were couches that ran along the sides of two walls opposite each other. There was also a cabinet that probably contained food and a mini-fridge. There was a little hallway that, you guessed, probably led to bedrooms for long trips. Seeing all this confirmed your thoughts about the cost of this Gummi Ship.

It also made you slightly angry. '_If they bought this thing at full price, what a waste…they could've spent it on something worth having.'_

"Like the ship, Maryx?" Sora asked, seating himself on the car-seat-like sofa.

"Yeah, it's great," you said, annoyed because you couldn't keep a hint of awe sliding into your voice. Also, you were surprised that you felt so bitter with him already, though you had only spoken a few words. '_Just because he reminds me of an older version of __him__, I suppose..."_

"Glad you like it," Riku said, spinning around in the pilot's seat to face you. "The King gave it to us when he bought his smaller one. Said that it was too big for him. We couldn't believe that he'd actually give a ship like this to us; it must've cost him a fortune."

You smiled almost against your will. "We're going to Hollow Bastion. That okay with you, Maryx?" Sora asked.

"Sure, whatever," you said, reverting to your usual bored tone. Riku frowned, but you pretended you didn't notice. "So what are you going to do in Hollow Bastion?" you asked.

"We'll going to see if some of our friends there have any info about where the keys would be, and to stock up on some stuff," replied Sora.

Riku spun around in the chair again to face the dashboard. "Ready to go?"

Sora grinned so wide the grin practically took up half his face. '_What is it with him and grinning? It's kinda weird…'_ "Yup!" He looked at you. "You ready?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. Ready." You pretended not to care less. Really though, you were totally psyched about going to a new world.

"Okay, then, taking off." With a glance at you he added, "You might want to sit down, Maryx, there's going to be a jolt."

You rolled your eyes and sat down as far away as you could get from Sora. "_Fine_, now I'm ready."

Frowning again Riku pressed a few buttons and pulled a lever. A low whirring noise developed and the Gummi Ship rose in the air. After a few vibrations, the ship was zooming across the night sky.

Once the Gummi Ship had been flying for a while Riku pressed the auto pilot button and sat down next to Sora on the sofa-thing. "We should be there in about fifteen hours."

"Mmhmm," you murmured, not paying attention.

Sora and Riku glanced at each other. You could tell that they were getting annoyed, but what did you care? You didn't even what to be here. "So…um, Maryx. What's, um, what's your world like?" Sora ventured.

At this you froze. You lost your attitude and glared daggers at Sora. "It was like any other world," you growled, silently daring him to question further.

He only hesitated a moment before saying, "But there must be something about your world…there's always something different."

"There's not much to say about it," you said again, trying to gain control of yourself

"Why…"

"I'm serious, Sora." You could hear an edge creeping into your voice._ 'Uh-oh. This is NOT good,' _you though.

"Maryx…"

"Stop asking!"

"But -"

"Look," you cut him off, letting your temper get the better of you, "I'd _really _like to not talk about my world, so if you'd kindly take the hint and let it sink nice and deep into your thick head, _just drop it_!

As soon as the words came out of your mouth you felt guilty, you always feel like that after you snap. Sora looked like the word 'confused' was scrolling before his eyes. Riku looked mad. '_Oh, damn. Now I have to apologize before I feel too guilty'. _

A moment or two past before you said, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped like that, it's not like you did anything wrong." You hesitated a bit. "The thing is…I really, really, REALLY don't like to think about my past. So if you don't mind, I'd rather not have the subject brought up again."

Sora and Riku's faces cleared up. "It's okay," Riku said, smiling at you. "Sora can never realize when he's being a nuisance."

"HEY! What's that supposed to mean?" Sora protested. Riku chuckled and you smirked.

"So, since you're probably not totally touchy about the topic like I am, what's your world like? I mean," you added hastily, "I know I was just there and all, but I couldn't really see much of it."

You were tempted to laugh as Sora and Riku kept interrupting each other to tell you about Destiny Islands, but you didn't. '_Just great! Now I'm jealous of them!'_ you thought after a while. Of course you didn't like feeling jealous, but it came over you and you couldn't stop it. 'So t_ypical. I have a world where my most recent memories keep me from sleeping at night while THEY have the Caribbean Islands…'_ Now you felt bitter because you didn't want to feel jealous but you couldn't stop it. '_Man, what's wrong with me?'_

"So yeah, that's our world," finished Sora, jolting you out of your thoughts. You felt your attitude come back to you.

"Hmm, nice," you murmured, before fishing out your iPod Touch from your pocket and somehow connecting to the internet.

**RIKU'S POV:**

_ 'What the hell? She's the one who asked, now she's just brushing us off?'_

"What's UP with her?" Sora whispered to you.

"No idea," you whispered back.

"Do you think you said something that put her off?"

"You're more likely to have said something, Sora."

"Oh, come off it."

"Make me."

"You know," Maryx's voice made you and Sora jump and snap out of your whisper-conversation, "I can hear everything you say, so you may as well talk at your normal volume, I don't really care if you talk about me.'

Normally this sort of remark would've made you want to pound her, even though she was a girl. But there was something about the way she said it. She sounded…almost like she was used to bad things being said about herself in front of her. You tried to catch her eyes, but her gaze was fixed on her iPod Touch.

"I'm hungry!" Sora exclaimed, before you could comment.


	4. The Great Ninja Yuffie

**RECAP:**

"You know," Maryx's voice made you and Sora jump and snap out of your whisper-conversation, "I can hear everything you say, so you may as well talk at your normal volume, I don't really care if you talk about me.'

Normally this sort of remark would've made you want to pound her, even though she was a girl. But there was something about the way she said it. She sounded…almost like she was used to bad things being said about herself in front of her. You tried to catch her eyes, but her gaze was fixed on her iPod Touch.

"I'm hungry!" Sora exclaimed, before you could comment.

**STORY STARTS:**

**Your POV**

The trip to Hollow Bastion had been a long one, with you not taking your eyes of your iPod the whole way. Sora and Riku tried to make conversation for the first half hour, but soon gave up and started talking about something that had happened at school.

You couldn't help but sigh as the ship landed. Luckily, they didn't hear you and were already hopping off the ship.

"…Bastion, Maryx?"

"Hmm?" you said saving your high score and turning off your iPod Touch. You jumped down after them and turned to look at Riku.

He looked a bit surprised that you were actually listening. '_Huh, he must've been trying to get my attention for a while.'_ "I was asking if you had ever been to Hollow Bastion before."

"Oh," you said in a bored tone. "No, never been there. I've heard a lot about it, though."

Riku opened his mouth to reply but Sora beat him to it. "You'll love Hollow Bastion! We'll introduce you to our friends." Riku rolled his eyes and you nearly grinned, but stopped yourself from doing so.

"Kay," you said, trying to look uninterested and succeeding. "Who are your friends?"

"There's Yuffie, Aerith, Cloud, Tifa, Leon, Yuna, Rikku, Paine, Merlin, and Cid," said Sora, counting them off on his fingers.

"Oh, by the way," Riku interrupted, "Leon gets really annoyed if you call him Squall."

You made a face. "Well, that'll come in handy, won't it?"

Sora opened his mouth and closed it. Riku looked annoyed once again, and he was about to say something when you heard a voice yelling out, "Hey guys!"

"Yuffie!" Sora and Riku said at the same time. A girl with short hair and black clothes jumped in front of you, and you leapt back, startled. '_Where the hell did she come from? Did she fall out the sky?'_

Riku shook his head. "Now look what you did, you freaked Maryx out! You've got to stop leaping off buildings, Yuffie."

"I didn't get freaked out," you said, glaring at him. "I'm just not used to people diving off buildings into my face like insane people."

Yuffie didn't seem to mind the last statement, and just laughed like it was a compliment. _"_Yuffie, this is Maryx! She's a friend of the King and she's helping us on the mission!" Sora introduced you.

"Hi," you said.

Yuffie grinned, though not as goofily as Sora. "Hiya! I'm the great ninja Yuffie!"

You raised an eyebrow at this. You had always loved seeing ninjas fight back on Earth. "Seriously? You're a ninja?" Out of the corner of your eye you saw Riku's face, and you could tell he thought that you meant this as an insult. "That is so awesome!" you said. You smiled as you saw Riku and Sora look surprised. "Can you show me some of your moves?"

Yuffie's grin broadened. "Sure!" She grabbed your arm and dragged you towards what you supposed was Merlin's house. Sora and Riku trailed after you, looking slightly confused.

* * *

"Hey Merlin!" Yuffie yelled, kicking down the door with a bang. An old man with a long beard appeared, wearing what seemed to be a blue nightgown covered with yellow stars.

"Yuffie, how many times do I have to tell you: _Don't Kick Down The Door_!" he said.

Yuffie shrugged and recited, "I shouldn't jump off buildings, I shouldn't kick down the door, I shouldn't draw on Cloud's swords, I shouldn't wreck Cid's store…"

"You wrecked Cid's store!" Sora and Riku yelped, at the same time you finished for her, "You can't swing over the bars on swings, you can't set fire to the school, you can't carve your name on buildings...hell, you can't do anything!"

Yuffie grinned at you and slung her arm around your shoulders. "Finally, a girl after my own heart!" she cheered happily.

Sora looked back forth between you and Yuffie, bewildered. "You two have set fire to schools?"

You rolled your eyes and nearly said something cutting, but Yuffie just laughed and said, "Sora, it means that compared to big things that we would never do like wrecking Cid's store and turning into arsonists, things like breaking doors and jumping off small buildings are things that we should be allowed to do."

"Oh," said Sora, but he still looked mystified. You rolled your eyes again. "Would you stop rolling your eyes?" Riku said.

Just to annoy him, you rolled your eyes one last time before turning your back on him. Yuffie gave you a look as if to say, 'What's your problem with them?' and your shook your head and gave her a look that said, 'I'll tell you later'. She nodded understandingly and faced Merlin again.

"Merlin, this is Maryx, she's a friend of the King and she's gonna help the boys on their mission!" she repeated what Sora said earlier.

"Well, nice to meet you, Maryx!" Merlin greeted.

"Hi," you quietly. '_Damn, why do I have to be so shy around people I don't know?'_ you thought._ I'm practically turning into Kao -'_

You all winced as you heard an explosion coming from another room. "I've got to get back to an experiment...and it's not going very well!" With a wave of his wand the door magically (literally!) lifted itself off the floor, the splintered pieces joined back together, and it attached its hinges to the doorframe again. Then he ran back to the room where the explosion came from.

"C'mon!" Yuffie grabbed you by the wrist again and dragged you away. "I gotta show you guys around the town!"

"But we've been here before," Sora reminded her.

"Yeah, like, a million times," Riku added.

Yuffie pouted. "Well, if you two don't wanna come, Leon and Aerith should be in Ansem's study."

"Okay then," Riku said, and they headed out the door. The boys didn't notice you stiffen. When they left, Yuffie started to drag you out the door, but you snatched your arm away.

"What's the matter? You look kinda pale," Yuffie noted, looking concerned.

"D-Did you just say…_Ansem's_study?" you asked, trying no to shiver at the name.

"Yup! Why?"

"As in, grey-haired-guy-with-creepy-yellow-eyes's study?"

"Oh!" Yuffie exclaimed. "Did King Mickey never tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Well, grey-haired-guy-with-creepy-yellow-eyes isn't actually Ansem. He's the heartless of Ansem's former apprentice, Xehanort. He went around PRETENDING to be Ansem. The real Ansem was a good guy, though."

"Oh", you said, taking this new information in. '_I wonder why the King never told me this? Then again, he didn't have a reason to, since I never told him about-'_

"Maryx!"

"Huh?" You were shaken out of your thoughtsby Yuffie prodding your arm. She was looking at you with a worried look on her face.

"Is something wrong, Maryx?"

You immediately felt bitter just because she was concerned. "Oh, it's nothing."

"Are you sure?"

"I said it's NOTHING, Yuffie," you pressed.

"Hell, girl, I can tell when something's up! You can tell me, really,"

"NO!" you yelled. Yuffie looked hurt, and you instantly felt bad. "Look," you said more softly, "maybe some other time. When I'm more comfortable about the idea of sharing my past with someone. Although that might be awhile…sorry?"

"Hey, it's no problem!" Yuffie said, losing the hurt look. "I totally understand! Don't feel bad." She grinned. "Well, shall we go?"

You grinned. "Definitely!"


	5. Mine

**RECAP:**

"What the hell, girl, I can tell when something's up! You can tell me, really,"

"NO!" you yelled. Yuffie looked hurt, and you instantly felt bad. "Look," you said more softly, "maybe some other time. When I'm more comfortable about the idea of sharing my past with someone. Although that might be awhile…sorry?"

"Hey, it's no problem!" Yuffie said, losing the hurt look. "I totally understand! Don't feel bad." She grinned. "Well, shall we go?"

You grinned. "Definitely!"

**STORY STARTS:**

Yuffie dragged you all the way around town, teaching you ninja moves and showing you everything that was interesting or freaky, except for Ansem's Study, since you still didn't feel like going there. "Another time, then," Yuffie said, brushing it off when you said this.

When the two of you finally returned to Cid's house it was getting dark. Sora and Riku were already waiting for you. "It's about time!" Sora said as Yuffie walked into the house with you tailing behind her.

"Hi to you to, spiky!" Yuffie ran at Sora and gave him a hug, making him reel.

"Spiky?" Sora gasped, trying to breath.

"Hey Maryx," Riku interrupted, before Yuffie could say anything more, "we were talking, and we decided that it's best if we leave now. That okay with you?"

You shrugged. "Sure, whatever."

"We're going to Atlantica first!" Sora informed you, grinning. Riku scowled a little.

"Okay." '_Hmm, why doesn't he want to go there_?' you wondered. '_Ahh, right, that's the world where we turn into mermen and mermaids. So he'll be going around topless and with a tail...I wonder if he has a six-pack...wait, WHAT? Did I just think that?'_

"Whoa, slow down!" Yuffie jumped in. "You guys can't leave! You just got here!"

You rolled your eyes just to piss Riku off some more. "We've been here all day, Yuffie."

"That's right, just one day!" She wagged a finger at Sora, "you're always rushing off! At least stay the night!"

"Thanks Yuffie," Sora said, "but Riku's right; it's best if we leave now." In response she just sulked.

"Look, we'll visit soon, 'kay?" you said.

That perked her up. "Fine" she said, "but soon better come quick!"

"It will," promised Riku.

* * *

"It's gonna be a twenty hour flight to Atlantica," Riku informed you and Sora once the Gummi ship took off. Instead of putting the ship on autopilot, he stayed at the controls. '_Just to avoid me I suppose,_' you thought.

"Hey, do you guys think my hair is too spiky?" Sora asked, perring at his reflection in a window.

"Your hair is fine, Sora," Riku said without taking his eyes off the Gummi route he was examining on a screen.

Sora pulled a face. "Your opinion doesn't count because you've known me forever and I've always had the same hair style. Maryx, what do you think?"

"It looks good," you said vaguely.

"More than that!"

"Oh, fine then. It looks good on you, which is cool because not a lot of people can look good with spiky hair. You pull it off really well, and it makes your facial-features stand out," you said in one breath.

"Huh." Sora was kind of surprised that you actually strung together a long sentence. "Well, thanks."

"Hmm." You stood up and went to investigate what was in one of the cupboards that was in the hallway, which did, as you suspected, lead to three bedrooms. Inside the first cupboard there was just some linen stuff and spare blankets. "Boring," you said aloud, shutting the door and opening the one opposite.

In that one was a black Gibson les Paul guitar and an amp. You wandered back to the room you came from, where Riku was still at the controls and Sora was throwing and catching a bouncy ball.

"Why is there a Gibson les Paul and an amp in the cupboard?" you asked, sitting down opposite Sora.

Riku hit the auto pilot button and spun his chair around. "That's mine," he said. You noticed that the coldness he had addressed you with in Hollow Bastion was almost gone. Key word, 'almost'. "How'd you know what it was?"

You made a face identical to the one Sora had made earlier. "How did I know it was a guitar?"

Riku nearly rolled his eyes but stopped himself. "No, how did you know it was a Gibson les Paul?"

"Oh…my older brother had one, except it wasn't black…you've heard of Slash?"

Riku looked surprised. "Yeah."

"Well it was a limited edition of his guitar, and it had Slash's autograph on it. He taught himself how to play it, then he taught me. I wasn't very good though."

He looked a little shocked that you actually knew the name of a famous guitarist ,and that you had actually shared some personal information. "Hey, you should play us something!" Sora suggested.

"No way!" you said hastily. "I totally suck!"

"Don't caaare" Sora sang out and went to fetch the guitar and amp.

"You could at least ask me if she could play my own guitar!" Riku called after him.

"I could, couldn't I?" Sora yelled back cheerfully. He emerged from the hallway-thing and handed the guitar to you, plugged it into the amp, then plugged the amp into a nearby outlet. This Gummi ship had everything, so you didn't even bother to ask how there were working outlets.

You sighed, knowing that Sora wouldn't NOT make you play something. "Do I need to tune it or anything?" you asked Riku, who was still sitting at the pilot's seat.

"Nah, it should be fine," he replied.

"Oh, okay." You were trying to think of what to play when Sora said, "You have to sing, too!"

"What the hell?" you yelled.

Sora grinned. "If you can't play well, you can make up for it by singing."

"But I can't sing, either!" you snapped.

He made puppy-eyes at you. "Pleeease?" '_Oh my gosh, he really is an older version of him...'_

You rolled your eyes without thinking. Riku pointed at you. "For Pete's sake, stop rolling your eyes!"

"I do it without thinking! It's like an instinct."

"Well just stop it!"

"I wonder who Pete is…" Sora muttered, silencing you and Riku. Sora shook his head. "Anyway, just do it, Maryx!"

You sighed again. "Oh, fine." You thought for a moment, then started to play your favourite song, the one that you taught yourself in your world. Soon you started to sing:

_Ohh, oh, oh, oh, oh_

_Ohh, oh, oh, oh, oh_

_You were in college working part time waiting tables__  
__Left a small town, never looked back__  
__I was the flight risk with the fear of fallin'__  
__Wonderin' why we bothered with love if it never lasts_

_I say "Can you believe it?"__  
__As we're lying on the couch__  
__The moment I can see it__  
__Yes, yes I can see it now_

_Do you remember when we're sittin' there by the water?__  
__You put your arm around me for the first time__  
__You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter__  
__You are the best thing that's ever been mine..._

**(Mine, Taylor Swift)**

When you finished the whole song, the boys were totally silent, then Sora started clapping like a maniac. "What do you mean, you can't sing or play guitar, Maryx?" he said. "That was amazing!"

"Yeah whatever," you replied, handing the guitar to Riku. "You must be tone-deaf."

Sora shook his head vigorously. "YOU'RE the tone-deaf one!" he cried. "You sing better than Ariel!"

"Who's Ariel?" you asked confused. 'Was that an insult or a compliment?' you wondered.

"She lives in Atlantica and is a brilliant singer," Riku told you. "And for once Sora's right, that was really good, Maryx."

You stood up. "Yeah, yeah. Thanks. I'm gonna go to bed. 'Night."

Sora sighed, obviously getting the hint that you didn't want to talk about it. "'Night."

As you entered the hallway and shut the door behind you, you could still hear them talking.

"I wonder why she thinks she sucks? She was awesome!" you heard Sora say.

"I dunno," Riku said. "Maybe something happened in her past that made her lose self-confidence."

"Hah, so do you still like her?"

"Shut up, she might hear you!"

"But you do!"

"Why do I tell you things…"

The voices softened, leaving thoughts swimming around your head. '_What the hell? Riku likes me_?'


	6. Riku the Merman!

**RECAP:**

As you entered the hallway and shut the door behind you, you could still hear them talking.

"I wonder why she thinks she sucks? She was awesome!" you heard Sora say.

"I dunno," Riku said. "Maybe something happened in her past that made her lose self-confidence."

"Hah, so do you still LIKE her?"

"Shut up, she might hear you!"

"But you do!"

"Why do I tell you things…"

The voices softened leaving thoughts swimming around your head. _'What the hell? Riku likes me?_'

**STORY STARTS:**

It was nightime, and still three hours until the ship 'landed' in Atlantica. After you had heard what Sora said, you couldn't fall asleep. So you grabbed a book and head back to the main room. When you entered, you saw that Riku had gone to bed already and Sora was twisting about in his seat while playing a game on a PSP.

"DAMN IT!" Sora yelled, tossing the PSP onto the seat next to him. "I. Just. Can't. WIN!"

"Say it a little louder, Sora, I don't think Organization XIII heard you," you commented, sitting down next to him.

Before Sora could say anything, Riku called out, "Keep it down!"

Sora mumbled something incoherable and pick up the PSP again. "Can't sleep, Ryx?"

"Um…yeah, just a lot on my mind," you responded, a bit thrown off by the shortened name. After a moment of uncomfortable silence you ventured, "So, um, what's giving you trouble?"

He looked confused. "'Giving me trouble?'"

"The _game_. What's the problem? Can't pass a level or something?"

"Oh!" he said. "Right! It's this video game about my journey that the King gave to me about two months ago. I can't defeat Xigbar!" He sighed like you had. "It's more annoying than it normally is, because I'm so close to finishing the game."

You held back a smile. "I hope you could defeat him in real life."

He nodded. "Oh, I did! It was way easier with that! But it's so different with this!" Then he grinned and held out the PSP to you. "Do you wanna try?"

You shook your head. "No thanks. I'm not very good at video games. Can I watch you?"

"Sure! It's a free world, right?" Sora said, taking the PSP back.

"Well...free Gummi Ship..."

Soon you had watched a few minutes of cutscenes, then Sora began pressing buttons to try and control a laser-filled battle. You noticed that he missed quite a few reaction commands, other than the ones where Xigbar was on a different floor at the beginning of the battle. It actually went alright until Xigbar hit him with about a million lasers at once. He groaned in annoyance he got ready to try again. "Try unequiping Donald's limit attack," you suggest. _'Hah, typical, that damn duck's as useless in a videogame as he is in real life!'_

He brightened up a bit. "Yeah! Maybe that'll work! Should I use a different Keyblade too?"

"Just use the best one you have, I guess."

After a few more tries, Sora started skipping the cutscenes and went straight to the fight. When Xigbar transformed the floor into a square and fired millions blue lasers nonstop, he made 'Sora' run around in circles, avoiding him from getting caught by them. When he made blue arrow-like things fly around, Riku called out from his room, "Why are you two suddenly so quiet?"

"KEEP IT DOWN!" you and Sora yelled back, caught up in the game.

Sora made 'Sora' jump through the air either close to or over the flying arrow-things, and finally managed to activate the Warp Snipe reaction command. Repeatedly pressing triangle made 'Sora' glide along the paths that the arrow-things had taken, leading him to Xigbar. There, he hit him repeatedly, activating the limit attack between Sora and Goofy whenever you suggested it. Near the end of the battle he made 'Sora' go into Master Form and hit Xigbar continuously, not giving him a chance to move. After another minute and another quarter of 'Sora's' HP being lost he defeated Xigbar.(**A/N When I did this battle I'm not sure what other abilities I had equipped the Party members with, but the method above works really well.**) You and Sora watched the next cutscenes, then he saved it.

You watched with Sora as a cutscene started. Ansem/Xehanort's Heartless was there, but then it turned out to be Riku. Of course, the King had told you a little about that, but it still seemed strange to you. Riku didn't seem at all like Xehanort's Heartless, and yet he was in Riku's heart. Confusing. Thinking about Xehanort's Heartless kind of put a damper on your mood.

"Nice job," you said vaguely.

Sora beamed happily. "Thanks, Rixxy!"

'"Rixxy?" You were about to add something esle when a bright, white portal appeared in the middle of the lounge. A bottle flew out of it, and then the portal disappeared.

"Huh? HEY RIKU! GET OUT HERE! RIXXY, TAKE A LOOK AT THIS!" Sora yelled in your ear.

"SPEAK UP! I CAN"T HEAR YOU, APARRENTLY I WENT DEAF IN THE LAST FIVE MINUTES!" you yelled back, wincing.

Riku came in and glared at you. "I didn't SAY anything, Maryx."

"I wasn't talking to you, Riku, but thanks for listening," you sneered.

"Look at this, Riku," Sora interrupted, "this just fell out of a white portal." He pried the cork out and a rolled-up letter with King's seal on it fell out of the bottle onto the floor.

"It's from the King!" Sora said, stating the obvious.

Riku picked up the letter and rolled it out, raising his eyebrows as he read. "Well? What does it say?" Sora asked impatiently.

Riku glanced at him then read aloud:

_ Dear Riku, Sora, and Maryx,_

_ I was doing some research on those keys, and I discovered something very important. Apparently each of the six keys has an element ,and each key is in the world that suits its element. The fire key is in Land of Dragons, the water key is in Atlantica, the light key is in Olympus Coliseum, the dark key in Port Royal, the wind key at Beast's Castle, and the earth key in Pride Lands_

_ Furthermore, before you can get the dark key, you must have the light key; you must have the water key before the fire key, and the wind key before the earth key. However it doesn't matter if you gain the dark key before the water key, or the wind key before the dark key, and so forth._

_ Also, I checked up on Kairi, and I couldn't say no…she'll be arriving by portal in a few minutes._

_ King Mickey_

_ P.S. Maryx, don't sneer at Riku._

"How the hell did he know that I was…" you muttered, not bothering to finish.

"GREAT! Kairi's coming!" Sora cheered.

"Oh, she's the girl who you were hugging in that game, right?" you asked.

"Yup!" Sora confirmed. "You'll love her!"

"She did seem nice," you admitted.

"Game?" Riku repeated, looking at Sora. "Are you STILL playing that thing? What was Mickey thinking, giving that to you…"

Sora crossed his arms defiantly. "It can be hard at some parts! Like with the flaming buildings? Remember that, Riku?"

Riku groaned. "How could I forget? You were whining about that for two weeks straight. And it wasn't even that hard. Did you finally manage to finish off Xigbar?"

"Yeah!" Sora beamed. "Rixxy helped me out!"

Riku raised his eyebrows. "'_Rixxy_?'" he echoed, smirking.

"Hey, I never told him to call m…" you were cut off by another bright portal appearing. Out of the portal stepped a redheaded, grey-blue eyed girl wearing a pink outfit and carrying a white duffel bag.

"Kairi!" Sora exclaimed, confirming your thoughts.

"Hi, Sora!" She hugged him tightly, and Sora wrapped his arms around her. After releasing him she went to hug Riku as well.

When she released him, she stepped back and laughed. "I can't believe how easy it was to convince the King to let me come!"

"Kairi," Sora said, "this is Maryx. Rix, this is Kairi!"

"Hi," you said a bit shyly. _'Hmmm, she doesn't seem too hyperactive or conservative,' _you thought.

Kairi smiled warmly at you. "Hey Maryx!" she greeted. "The King told me about you!"

You smile back ruefully. "Good things, I hope."

She laughed easily. "Mostly! Are you _really_ a great fighter with heaps of potential that your already putting to use?"

"He said that?" you asked, stunned. "He never said that to me before!"

She clapped a hand over her mouth. "I forgot!" she said. "He told me not to tell you he said that! He said that you might start slacking if you found out."

You shrugged. "I;ve already forgotten about it." Secretly you were still blown away. Why had he never praised you before?

Sora suddenly frowned. "Hey wait, where are you going to sleep, Kai?"

"The King told me to share with you, Maryx," Kairi said.

You shrugged. "Okay."

"Did Mickey tell you what our mission is?" Riku asked.

"Yup," answered Kairi.

He sighed with relief. "Great. Now we don't need to explain it."

"Yeah," you agreed.

Riku looked at you in surprise. "Wait, you actually agree with me?"

You scoffed in response. "I never knew it was a crime."

He sighed again. "Look, Kairi, you sleep in Maryx's room. It's getting late." Without warning he walked out of the room and you three heard his bedroom door slam.

"What's wrong with him?" Sora wondered aloud.

You grinned and laughed a little. "I think it's me."

Kairi shook her head. "Well, he's right, it's getting late. Can we get to sleep?"

"Sure," you said. Kairi left to go to your room, but you paused in the doorway. "Oh, and Sora?" you added, turning your head slightly.

"Yeah?" he asked, stretching.

"Don't call me Rixxy or Ryx. Ever. Or I'll have to hurt you very, very badly. Got it?"

Sora gulped a little. "G-Got it."

* * *

Three hours later, the Gummi Ship was hovering over a world that looked as if it was completely made up of water. "Oh, is this the world where we have to change into merpeople?" Kairi asked. The four of you had woken up a while ago.

"Yep," you, Riku, and Sora replied at the same time . "How would you know?" Riku asked you.

"The King made me study about the worlds and the heartless whenever he wasn't training me," you said. "Which wasn't often. I didn't have much free time."

He winced slightly. "He trained you? You poor thing."

"Exactly." You smiled a little at the memory. '_Though it wasn't that bad compared to some things...'_

Sora looked back and forth between you. "I don't get it…was the King a tough trainer?"

Holding back a biting remark you replied, "Very. Not that he's always like that, obviously, but whenever he trained me it was like he turned into one of those tough-as-nails army generals."

Riku laughed. "That's exactly what I used to think when he trained me. While you were sleeping," he added for Sora's benefit.

"Sleeping?" you asked, glancing at Riku. "You trained at night?"

"I'll explain later," he smiled. "It's a long story."

"Sora," Kairi said, "you do know how to transform us, right?"

"Yep!" Sora confirmed. "Donald showed me how to ages ago."

"Ages?" you repeated.

"Don't worry," Sora said. "I have a great memory!" Riku suddenly had a violent coughing fit and you pounded his back. "Sorry," Riku said hoarsely, clearing his throat. "Go ahead, Sora. Stir your amazing memory."

Sora ignored his last remark. He did something that you couldn't follow, then in a flash of light you found that you had all been transported into the massive body of water.

Sighing, you looked down, knowing what to expect. "Oh, brilliant..." You had a dark, dark, purple tail, and was wearing two pale lilac shells.

art/Kairi-Mermaid-168179420

File:Sora_(Atlantica)_

art/Riku-Merman-156755112

You noticed that Riku was staring at you. Before you could tell him to take a picture that would last longer, a girl with long red hair swam up to you four.

"Sora!" she exclaimed, hugging him. "You're back!"

"Hi, Ariel!" Sora said, once she had released him. "I thought you lived on land now that you and Eric married!"

She beamed. "Oh, I do, but Daddy gave me this necklace as a wedding present." She fingered the necklace around her neck. It had a green shell in the centre, and on either side on the shell were three pearls. One of the pearls had turned blue. "When I wear this necklace, I can become a mermaid for seven hours, and for every hour I spend as a mermaid, a pearl turns blue. When the shell in the centre turns blue, I'll return to human form."

"That's great!" Sora said.

You cleared your throat, trying to get his attention

"Oh right! Ariel, these are my friends Riku, Kairi, and Maryx!" he introduced the three of you.

"Hi!", she said, smiling at all of you. "Do you have keyblades too?"

"Yep, they all do," Sora confirmed.

"Hi!" Kairi said back, waving. You and Riku simply waved in greeting before looking away.

"I'm glad you're back," Ariel said, "because this weird guy keeps showing up and wrecking the place!"

"Who?" you all asked at once.

"Some crazy boy with a mullet and an funny-looking instrument?"

"Demyx!" you and Sora yelled out straight away. "How did you know?" he asked you.

"I told you, the King taught me all about Organization XIII," you responded.

"I thought you two killed them all?" Kairi said, looking confused.

"But we did!" Sora and Riku said. "They must have resurrected somehow."

"Did you shoot them as they faded away?" you asked.

Sora looked baffled. "Shoot them?"

You gave him an 'are you kidding me' look. "Please tell me you're joking."

"No, no I'm not…what do you mean by 'shoot them'?" Sora asked frantically.

You sighed in agitation. "Once you've defeated an Organization member and he fades away a Keyblade master has to shoot him with light using his or her Keyblade so that they can't regenerate!"

"Wait, wait," Riku cut you off, "you mean to say that _all_ of our work put into wiping them out means _nothing_, just because we didn't shoot them while they were dying?"

"Yup," you replied nodding.

"Shit!" he yelled punching a rock and then clutching his fist.

"So, there are thirteen of these people?" Ariel asked.

"Uh-huh," Sora said. "It's hard to remember all their names though…" Riku nodded in agreement.

"Xemnas, Xigbar, Xaldin, Vexen, Lexeaus, Zexion, Saix, Axel, Demyx, Luxord, Marluxia, Larxene, and Roxas, in order of rank," you said automatically. They all stared at you. "What? I already told you: the King made me study."

"Well, Roxas shouldn't count, because he's a part of me now," Sora said. "So that just leaves the other twelve."

"And this Demyx person is the…ninth one?" Ariel asked.

"Got that right!" said a voice behind you. Turning around, you saw Demyx himself behind you, with a black-and-blue tail.

"What, did someone, like, beat up you tail?" you asked, glancing at it.

"Huh?" He didn't get it. Then, "Hey! It's an awesome tail!"

"Uh-huh," you and Riku said dryly. "Well, it is pretty neat," you admitted.

Demyx looked pleased. "Hey, thanks, whatever-your-name-is!"

"What are you on about?" Riku glared at you.

You shrugged. "Hey, his whole body will be black and blbue when we're done with him, so at least his tail won't clash with his skin." Riku laughed at this.

"Hey! I'm still here!" Demyx protested.

"Not for long," Sora said, surprisingly serious. "Maryx, stay out of this one, okay? Just so you can watch us and see how it's done."

"'Not for long'? Ohhh man! I told them they were sending the wrong guy!" Demyx mumbled, looking worried.

"Yeah, just this one time, Maryx," Riku agreed.

"Fine," you said, thinking: _'I wanna see just how good these guys are.'_

"Hey," Demyx started.

"Stop saying 'hey'," you snapped.

"Well, fine!" he said, looking offended. "But just take this warning: NEVER judge a book by its cover!"

"You said that last time," Sora reminded him. "Can't you think of anything else?"

"Wha-that's it!" Demyx looked a little shaky but summoned his sitar. "DANCE, WATER, DANCE!" he yelled. Water beings floated into view as Sora and Riku summoned their weapons. They finished them off easily and started attacking Demyx, but with him being surrounded by his element he started to unleash stronger attacks, so they failed miserably.

After fifteen minutes or so Sora yelled out something to Riku. Riku and Sora suddenly began blasting attacks at Demyx, one after the other. You watch, slightly stunned, as they finished him off.

They were bumping fists as Demyx faded away when you yelled, "Sora! Shoot him, quickly!"

"What? Oh, right!" Hesitant of what to do, he pointed his Keyblade at Demyx. Immediately a flash of light shot out from the Keyblade, automatically landing on Demyx. He screamed in pain, and was swallowed up by swirls of white and black.

"Nice attack," you commented when they returned to the three of you.

Sora looked pleased. "Thanks, Ryx!"

You raised an eyebrow. "What was that?"

"Umm…I..ah…thanks, Maryx," Sora stammered.

"You're welcome."

"It's called Session," Riku informed you. "It almost always works."

"It was great," said Ariel. Another pearl on her necklace had turned blue. "You should come with me to the palace! Daddy will definitely want to thank you two."

"Sure!" Sora agreed happily. Soon you were all gathered in the Throne Room. King Triton stood/swam before Sora and Riku, and the rest of the room was packed with merman and mermaids.

"On behalf of Atlantica," King Triton started, "I would like to thank Sora and Riku, for saving us from Demyx, the one who has been stirring up trouble for days." He went on to say how Sora saved them previously from the Heartless, how powerful their Keyblades are, and other things. Eventually you zoned out entirely, as he had been talking for over ten minutes. You felt sorry for those two, because they had to pretend that they were listening. Finally he concluded, "and so, I would like to present you with this." Here a beam of light zapped out of his trident and hit the air in front of Sora and Riku. In a flash of light a sitar, that was identical to Demyx's except a bit smaller, appeared.

Sora reached out and grabbed the sitar. As he hand made contact with it, another flash of light appeared, and when it cleared a blue key was left in his hand. All the mermen/maids started clapping.

King Triton leaned in. "Was that supposed to happen?" he whispered so that only the four of you could hear.

Riku smiled. "Don't worry, Your Majesty, this is better than anything that you could give us."

* * *

"One key down, five to go," Sora stated, back at the Gummi Ship.

"Don't forget the Organization," you reminded him.

"That's not part of the mission," Riku said.

"Well," you said slowly, like you were speaking to a five year-old, "wherever the _keys _are, there'll be at least _one _Organization creep, because for some reason they're looking for them too. So _basically_, it _is _a part of our mission."

Riku rolled his eyes, and you hid your smirk when he realized what he'd done. "Where next?" you asked, changing the subject.

"The King said that we have to get the water key before the fire key…" Sora said.

"So next, we might as well go to Land of Dragons," finished Riku. He punched in the coordinates for Land of Dragons and hit the auto pilot button. "It'll take us one day to get there."

"Great!" Kairi said. "We can stay up!" Sora added, just before he and Kairi simultaneously yawned.

You and Riku smirked at the same time. "Kids need to go to bed, you know," Riku said.

"We're not going to bed!" Kairi said, and almost immediately covered another yawn.

"It's 1:30 in the morning," you pointed out, looking at your watch. "You two should get some rest."

"Yeah, yeah," Sora said. "C'mon, Kairi." They both left.

"You going to bed?" Riku asked you.

"Nah," you replied, sitting on the seats and picking up the book you had left there.

He sat down opposite you. "Neither am I." Both of you read for a while and listened to your iPods.

After about half an hour your head started to droop. And before you realized it, you had fallen asleep.

* * *

**Riku's POV**

You looked up from your iPod Touch suddenly to see Maryx slumped over, her hair falling on her face. Even asleep, she still looked beautiful. '_Although...she looks tense...how can someone be tense when they're not even awake? It's like she expects someone to attack her while she's asleep." _

Slowly, you pulled out your earphones and crossed over to where she was sleeping. When she didn't move, you carefully picked her up. She stirred slightly in your arms, but didn't wake up. Cautiously, you moved down the hall and pushed the door to her room open with your shoulder. You gently laid her on the bed, and brushed her hair off her face. She shifted slightly and sighed contentedly. Smiling a little, you left the room and went back to the lounge to retrieve your iPod.

**A/N: Good grief, I've lost count of how many times I've edited this chapter, and yet I always find mistakes! :P**


	7. Maryx vs Lexaeus

**RECAP:**

**RIKU'S POV**

You looked up from your iPod Touch suddenly to see Maryx slumped over, her hair falling on her face. Even asleep, she still looked beautiful. '_Although...she looks tense...how can someone be tense when they're sleeping? It's like she expects someone to attack her while she's asleep." _

Slowly, you pulled out your earphones and crossed over to where she was sleeping. When she didn't move you carefully picked her up. She stirred slightly in your arms, but didn't wake up. Cautiously, you moved down the hall and pushed the door to her room open with your shoulder. You gently laid her on the bed, and pushed her hair off her face. She shifted slightly and sighed contentedly. Smiling a little, you left the room and went back to the lounge-thing to retrieve your iTouch.

**STORY STARTS:**

**Your POV**

You sat up hurriedly and rubbed your forehead. '_When did I get back here?_' you wondered. You had woken up several times from your usual nightmares, but you hadn't even realized that you'd somehow gone to bed. Kairi was reading a book in a pink sleeping bag.

"Hey Kairi," you said. "Did you see me come in here last night?"

She looked up from her book, which, you noted, looked a lot like your favorite. "Nope, I must've been asleep."

"Huh. Weird." You leaned off the side of the bed and plucked the book out of Kairi's hands. "Is this mine?"

She smiled apologetically, "I didn't think you'd mind."

You smiled back. "I don't mind at all," you reassured her, handing it back.

"What's the time?" Kairi asked as she shifted a little.

"Ummm…" you looked at your watch lying next to your pillow. "6:15 am."

Kairi sighed a little. "About two more hours to go. I can't sleep now, though."

"Neither," you agreed.

"Might as well get up then."

"But it's warm!" you whined.

She laughed. "You sound just like Sora!"

"Ugh!" You made a face, making her laugh harder.

The door to the room opened suddenly. "What are you guys laughing about?" Sora asked sleepily. "What could be funny at 6:30 in the morning?

"YOU!" Kairi said, and went off again.

"Huh?" Sora looked utterly confused. "You made me get out of bed for that? I was warm, you know!" Kairi was practically in hysterics now and even you couldn't help smiling.

Riku turned up next to Sora. "What's with all the noise?"

Kairi gasped, trying to recover. "She…warm…Sora…got out of bed…he's so confused!" she finished, laughing more and close to passing out.

"What?" Now Riku looked baffled. "What's she on about Maryx?" You shook you head in response, still smiling. "Yeah…well, anyway, I don't think any of us can sleep now," he stated.

"But I was warm!" Sora pointed out again. Kairi, who was finally breathing again, cracked up once more.

"Gosh, calm down Kairi, your face is matching your hair," you said, eyeing her locks. By the time she had calmed down the boys had left, and you had brushed your teeth, showered, and changed into a dark grey mini-skirt with darker grey shorts underneath, and a dark purple off-the-shoulder T-shirt.

"Took you long enough," you smiled, picking up the hair straightener.

Some time later you and Kairi were in the main room drinking from juice boxes. The boys walked in as you were throwing them away.

"There's still nineteen hours until we land," Riku said.

"We knew that already," you pointed out.

"I'm just reminding you," Riku replied.

"We don't need reminding."

"Sora does."

"Hey!" Sora complained as you laughed. "I know," he said trying to changing the subject. "Rix…Maryx…you can play for us again!"

"Play what?"

"The _guitar_," Riku said as if he were speaking to a dimwit.

You stuck your tongue at him and turned back to Sora. "You know I suck."

Sora shook his head vigorously. "No way, you don't!"

"You _are_ pretty good," Riku admitted.

"Come on," Kairi said.

You rolled your eyes and went to fetch the guitar. When you came back Riku was standing near the dashboard and Kairi and Sora was sitting on one of the couch-seat-things side by side.

"Hang on," you tuned the guitar a little bit then started playing. Soon you began singing, and Riku turned around to look.

_The story starts when it was hot and it was summer and_

_I had it all, I had him right there where I wanted him_

_She came along, got him alone, and let's hear the applause_

_She took him faster than you can say sabotage_

_I never saw it coming, nor had I suspected it_

_I underestimated just who I was dealing with_

_She had to know the pain was beating on me like a drum_

_She underestimated just who she was stealing from_

_She's not a saint, and she's not what you think_

_She's an actress, whoa-oa_

_She's better known for the things that she does_

_On the mattress, whoa-oa_

_Soon she's gonna find stealing other people's toys_

_On the playground won't make you many friends_

_She should keep in mind, she should keep in mind_

_There is nothing I do better than revenge, ha_

**_(_(Better That Revenge - Taylor Swift)**

_ "_Hey, you are a good singer, just like Sora told me," Kairi said when you finished the whole song.

You raised an eyebrow at the brunette. "'Like Sora told me?'"

Sora went red, "Uh…I…didn't think you'd…mind?"

"Hey this is awesome," you said.

"Huh?"

You smiled sweetly at him. "I only need one more reason to kick you where it hurts." Riku burst out laughing.

"Not funny," Sora pouted.

"Hey, if we come across another Organization member, I'm taking him on alone, okay?" you said. Both the boys opened their mouths to protest, but you cut them off. "It's only fair, since I let you guys fight without me last time."

Riku sighed. "Fine, but we're gonna jump in if you get into trouble."

You shook your head defiantly. "No way. Maybe another time, but I'll do this one on my own. Promise you won't get involved unless I really get into trouble and I say that I need help?"

"Fine, I promise," Sora said.

You looked at Riku expectantly. He looked like he was going to argue but he gave in anyway. Sighing he said, "I promise too."

* * *

It was 9am the next day, and the four of you were wandering through the Bamboo Groove in Land of Dragons. "I wonder where Mulan is," Sora wondered.

"She should be around here somewhere," Kairi reassured him.

"Whoa!" Sora said leaping back.

"What is it?" you asked frantically, summoning your Keyblade.

Sora pointed at a rock where a long shadow could be seen. "Could it be a Heartless?"

Riku shook his head and leaned over to you. "This happened last time he was here," he whispered.

"You mean he's falling for it again?" you grinned. You both looked back at Sora. He was creeping up to the rock ninja-style, Keyblade ready to strike.

"Oh God." Riku looked away grinning. Sora yelled "hi-ya!" and smashed the rock to pieces.

"HEY! What'dya think you're doing?" Sora jumped back, startled by the sassy voice. "I'll have you know I'm the strongest, toughest, mightiest dragon in allllll the land! Guardian of the year!" A long, skinny little red dragon appeared out of nowhere and jumped onto Sora's shoe, kicking at him like crazy. "Mu-shu!" Sora whined.

"He's a mighty dragon?" Kairi whispered to you.

"Yeah that's right, the great and mighty Mushu! Tremble at the na…Sora!" Mushu finally looked at his target and hopped onto his shoulder. "Damn boy, whadya tryna do, give me a heart attack? I was seein' the stars of heaven!" He ranted for a little while and then said, "Heeeey, you've got new troops with you!"

"Mushu, this is Riku, Kairi, and Maryx. Guys, this is Mushu, he's Mulan's guardian!"

"Aww, you are so cute!" Kairi cooed.

"_Cute?_" yelled Mushu. "_Girl_, do _not_ call me cute!"

Kairi blinked a little. "Okay…"

"Yeah, that's right, a might dragon ain't supposed to be - OOOH! Girly, love the _hair_!"

"Thanks!" she beamed, patting her hair in place.

"And you!" He leapt from Sora's shoulder to Kairi's and made square frames with his fingers, peering through them to look at you. "You. Are. FINE!"

"I know, right?" Riku said.

You raised an eyebrow at him. "Excuse me?"

"Uh…" He started blushing.

"Mushu, where's Mulan?" Sora asked hastily.

"Sora, I've been looking for her myself."

You scoffed a little. "Not much of a guardian, then, are you?"

"I'll have you know, Rixxy, that I _know _where she should be, and I'm _going_ to where she should be!" Mushu stated, jumping to your shoulder.

"Don't call me Rixxy," you said flatly.

"Aw, but it suits you so well, Maryx," Riku said, smirking.

"Oh, shut up Riku," you snapped.

"So if you know where she is, why are we standing here?" Sora asked.

"Boy, you're the one who started talking! She's at the palace waiting for her husband."

"Well, let's go to the pal…husband?" Sora yelped.

Mushu looked a little pleased with himself. "Yup! She and Shang got married!" He wiped an imaginary tear from his eye. "I planned the wedding myself...it was so _beautiful_!"

"Wow…"

"Who's Shang?" Kairi asked.

"The general of the emperor's army," Sora said. "That's so great! They were made for each other…" He got this dopey look in his eye.

"Sora?" Kairi waved a hand in front of his face, "What's up?"

"We're missed the wedding!" Sora moaned.

You groaned. "Sora, does that really matter?"

Soon you were all outside the palace, and Sora had introduced you, Riku, and Kairi to Mulan and Shang.

"It's a good thing you four are here," Shang started.

"Kairi doesn't fight much," Riku and Sora said simultaneously. Kairi pouted and pretended to be offended.

"Well then, it's a good thing you _three _are here," Shang corrected, "because another person is here in the mountains like last time. Remember, in the black cloak? Do you think it could be the same person?"

Riku grinned. "That was me, so I really doubt I'm the one you're looking for."

"You?" Shang and Mulan said, looking at him.

"He was keeping the Organization at bay," Sora reassured them.

"Well, then it must be someone from the Organization," Mulan confirmed. "He's somehow been creating major earthquakes and completely reducing towns to rubble."

"He's up in the mountains," Shang repeated. "We couldn't catch him, so could you give it a try?"

"Sure!" Sora said. You and Riku nodded in agreement.

* * *

A few hours later, the four of you were in the snowy mountains where Shang had told Sora the Organization member had been seen last. You had been searching for a while in pairs - you with Sora, and Kairi with Riku - when the four of you met up again.

"Maybe if we just wait this person will show up," Kairi suggested, rubbing her arms and shivering. Standing behind her Riku looked a bit red in the face. "Riku, are you blushing?" Sora asked curiously.

He jumped a little. "What? Of course not…just the cold."

Kairi whispered something in Sora's ear that made him nod. "Interesting," Sora grinned, looking at you for a moment.

"What?" you asked, putting your hands in the air.

You saw a movement in the corner of your eye, and you swung around to see a very muscular man with strangely wavy, short red-orange hair. "Lexaeus," you and Riku said at the same time.

"He made me study," you reminded Riku when he glanced at you.

"I should have guessed when Mulan mentioned the earthquakes," Riku muttered.

"Well, look what I found," Lexaeus said softly. "We meet again, Riku."

"You fought this guy?" Sora asked Riku. He nodded, "You were going up in Castle Oblivion, I was in the lower levels," he said.

"I do hope you do not have to resort to the darkness once again, Riku," Lexaeus said.

Riku smirked. "Oh I won't need to..." he gave you a little shove, "because she's fighting you."

You turned around to face Riku. "Seriously?"

He sighed in response. "I don't break promises."

You grinned slightly. "Awesome!"

Lexaeus shook his head incredulously as you stepped forward. "What a comedown this is. It is insulting." He summoned his gigantic tomahawk and slammed it into the ground, creating massive shockwaves that sent Riku, Sora and Kairi flying back. Luckily you had your feet firmly planted on the ground already and protected your face with your arms.

"If that's all you can do…" you said, summoning your Keyblade, Broken Pieces. You ran at him, attacking ruthlessly and jumping out of the way often to avoid his attacks.

After a few minutes he was obviously tired, but you were getting bored. You figured that if you carried on fighting him this way he die in about five minutes. '_Way _too boring' you thought. Jumping away from Lexaeus you stood still. He stopped in mid-swing to see what you were doing. "Is it just me, or is this getting really dull?" you asked him innocently. When he didn't respond you carried on, "Let's make this more interesting."

"How do you suggest we do this?" asked Lexaeus.

You smiled. "I bet that I could beat you in less than one minute without my Keyblade _and_ with no magic."

"Oh, so you think you can do that?"

"Of course," you scoffed. "Why else would I suggest it?"

He smirked. "If you wish, but remember: it is your loss." You didn't back down, but instead just made your Keyblade disappear.

"Are you crazy?" yelled Riku from a distance. "He'll kill you!"

You turned your head slightly in his direction to acknowledge what he'd said, but you didn't respond. Within seconds you seemed to have vanished. "W-What?" Lexaeus swung his head around trying to see where you went.

"Looking for me?" you appeared at his right about a meter or two away, smirking. He tried to hit you with his tomahawk, but you moved to his other side with lightning speed, then behind him, to his right side again, in front of him, even above him, since you could fly for short times.

For a few more seconds this went on, but you got bored again. So when he slammed his weapon into the ground again, you jumped away, then immediately transported back to him and started punching and kicking him from all sides like there was no tomorrow. Unable to escape, he tried to block as best as he could, but you were way too fast.

**Riku's POV**

The three of you watched in amazement as Maryx attacked Lexaeus. It was obvious she was going to win; she was moving so fast she was literally a blur.

"Is it just me, or is she _actually_ moving that fast?" Kairi asked skeptically.

You nodded. "It's not just you."

**Your POV**

After a little while you leapt away from Lexaeus to actually let him breathe. When he glared at you, you smiled sweetly. "I've already gotten you worn out and it's been less than forty seconds!" you said gleefully, checking your watch. ."And by the way, I'm going easy on you, normally I'm much faster." You transported around him seven times in one second. "See?"

"Don't mock me!" Lexaeus roared, and ran up to you, swinging his tomahawk at you to deliver a deathly blow.

"Look out, Maryx!" Riku yelled. Thankfully, you moved away just in time, and sprang further back. You raised a hand in the air, and a glowing disc formed in the palm of your hand and began spinning rapidly. _"Destructo disc_!" Three thin energy discs zoomed at Lexaeus. He jumped back, unsure of what these things were, though he didn't move fast enough. The first two missed, but the third one cut off his right arm. "You said no magic!" he screamed.

"Sorry, " you said drily, "but I never said no energy attacks." You took a small step back and drew your hands to your left side. "Ka…me…" you started, a glowing, electrified ball of energy forming between your hands, "a…me…" Lexaeus' eyes widened with horror as he realized what you were about to do. "_Haaa_!" you yelled, the energy ball blasting from your hands and hitting him, making him flying back. As the blast died away, you saw Lexaeus fading a little.

"Sora!" you called, turning towards the brunette, who was staring at you like you were an alien. He shook his head rapidly as if to clear his mind and ran over to Lexaeus before he faded away entirely. Swinging his Keyblade around in some random move that actually looked pretty cool, he jumped backwards and shot a beam of light at him. Lexaeus yelled once more before completely fading away.

After he had faded Sora looked at you in awe. "How the hell did you move so fast?"

"It's how I've only fought," you shrugged. "The king only showed me how to fight with a Keyblade a year ago when I met him. I'm more used to fighting with a sword or no weapon at all. And like I said," you added, "I can move much faster. To me, that was pretty slow."

Sora shook his head in disbelief. "I couldn't even follow you."

"There's no way you can follow me," you said tactlessly. "You don't have enough will power to focus on my movements." Sora blinked a little. "Kairi can't either," you continued as the other two walked over to listen, "Riku might if he practiced though."

"Aw, why Riku?" Sora whined.

"Because he has more will power," you replied. "I just said that like, two seconds ago."

"What do you mean, 'if I practiced enough'?" Riku asked.

"I mean, if I trained with you or you watched me train or fight or whatever, and you focused on where I was moving, then after a while you'd be able to see me," you explained.

"Huh." Riku grinned a little.

"Still, awesome fighting," Kairi said. "Maybe we should head back to the palace and tell Mulan that Lexaeus is dead."

* * *

Mulan ran up to you as the four of you approached. "Th...thank goodness...you're back!"" she said, panting."He's…he's done it again!"

"Who?" Sora asked.

"The man…in the …black cloak," she said. "But he didn't...create an earthquake...this time. He just destroyed a whole village...with fire!"

"WHAT?" you, Sora, and Riku yelled.


	8. Byebye, Axel

**Recap:**

Mulan ran up to you as the four of you approached. "Th...thank goodness...you're back!" she said, panting. "He's…he's done it again!"

"Who?" Sora asked.

"The man…in the black cloak," she said."But he didn't...create an earthquake this just destroyed a whole village...with fire!"

"WHAT?" you, Sora, and Riku yelled.

**STORY STARTS:**

"No way!" Sora said. "Maryx just smashed him! And I shot him as he faded! He destroyed a village at the same time?"

You rolled your eyes. "Oh, yes Sora, he destroyed a city _while_ we were fightinghim. It's only something that the average person can achieve."

"It's so strange," Mulan said, "this is the first time he's used fire to wipe out a village."

"Fire?" you repeated. "Could it be Axel?"

"How did you know that Ax -" Sora started.

"_The King made me study half the time!" _you snapped at Sora. "How many times do I have to tell you..."

"It can't be Axel," he objected. "He's good now!"

"He could've changed when he was resurrected or whatever, Sora," Riku reminded him.

"And besides," you added, "which other Organization member fights with fire? The only other way the village could've been destroyed that way is if it was started with lightning…"

"Larxene," Riku confirmed, "which is highly unlikely."

"Who's Larxene?" Sora asked.

"Number twelve," you and Riku replied. "So it must be Axel," you finished.

"You can reach the village in a few minutes if you go along that path," Mulan pointed in one direction. "If you hurry, you might catch him."

* * *

After a while, you had reached what might've been a village, but was now a crumbling, smoking pile of blackened rubble. "Ugh, just look at this mess," Kairi said in disgust and horror.

"_Hel_-lo!" The four of you turned around to see Axel and a woman with blonde hair in strange-looking pigtails.

"That's Larxene," Riku informed Sora.

Larxene smirked. "Nice to see you again Sora…_not."_

"Huh?" Sora looked confused. "I've never meet you before!"

She let out a humourless laugh. "Oh I forgot, you can't remember. Never mind! It doesn't matter. Not now, anyway. Axel's gonna kill you!"

"Blunt, much?" you muttered.

"Wait what?" Axel stammered. "You said that we'd take them on togeth…"

A swirling dark mist surrounded Larxene. "Have fun, Axel!" she laughed as she disappeared.

Axel shook his head. "How nice of her," he said, summoning his chakrams.

"Hey Axel…" Sora got cut off by him flames shooting up around Kairi. "Kairi!" Riku and Sora yelled.

"Let's just get this over with, got it memorized?" Axel sighed, and started attacking Riku.

The battle lasted for quite a while, because although all three of you were fighting him at the same time, walls of fire kept surrounding each of you, preventing you from moving until they came down again.

"He's gotten stronger," Sora said as you all touched down on the ground.

"If he couldn't see us," Riku remarked, "he couldn't summon fire walls around us. Then he'd be totally vulnerable."

"Now why didn't I think of that?" you said, slapping your forehead and making your Keyblade disappear.

"Well what a disappointment," Axel smirked. "I was hoping you would stick around."

"You better cover your eyes," you said just loud enough for Sora and Riku to hear.

"Maryx, what are you doing?" Riku asked, looking a bit worried.

"I'm gonna blind him temporarily," you whispered.

"You can do that?" Sora exclaimed, looking stunned.

You rolled your eyes. "No Sora, I'm just saying that so I can get myself killed," you replied.

"Enough talking," Axel said, making flames dance around his chakrams.

"Cover your eyes," you repeated to the two. They did as you said, squeezing their eyes shut as shielding them with one arm, still holding their Keyblades. You rose into the air and raised your hands to the sides of your face. "_Solar Flare!_" you yelled. A harsh, blindingly bright light emanated from your body, overcoming Axel. In a flash the light was gone and you landed on the ground, stumbling a little as you did so. Solar Flare was energy attack, but it required light from you to work, and, well, you were the Princess of Darkness. Attacks that involved light took up a lot of your strength.

Up ahead, Axel was clutching his head. "I can't see!" he was yelling. "You've blinded me!"

Sora and Riku ran up to you. "Are you okay, Maryx?" Sora asked.

"Attack him now," you said, ignoring his question. "It only lasts for a little while." Sora went ahead and started attacking Axel. Riku hesitated for a few seconds, but eventually joined Sora. You stayed behind, trying to regain your strength as quickly as you could.

Like Riku had said, Axel was completely vulnerable now that he couldn't see. It only took a little more time and the Session Attack to finish him off. As he faded, Sora started swinging his Keyblade back to shoot him. "I guess it's goodbye for good now…Roxas," Axel said.

This distracted Sora, but he snapped out of it and shot the red-haired nobody determinedly. After the scream, he was gone, and the flames around Kairi vanished. She and the boys ran back to where you were still leaning on one arm against a charred pillar that hadn't collapsed. "Maryx, are you okay?" Sora asked again.

You removed your hand from the pillar and tucked a strand of hair behind your ear, trying not to look exhausted. "I'm fine," you replied, trying to smile. "That attack uses a lot of light, so it just wears me out a little, that's all. Seriously, it's fine," you added, since you could tell by their expressions that they weren't convinced. Nothing would make you admit that you actually felt like you were about to collapse.

They didn't have time to argue, however, because you sensed a large mass of energy heading your way from behind you all, fast. The other three were oblivious, and there wasn't time to warn them or to duck. You shoved Kairi out of the way and grabbed Sora and Riku's arms, transporting out of the way just before the lightning bolt flashed by. It blew up the remains of what used to be a house instead of hitting you. You swung around to see Larxene laughing hysterically and disappearing.

"You think she's coming back?" Sora said after a moment.

"Don't think so," you said. "She would've appeared again by now, right?"

"Right!"

Kairi looked really shaken up. "She nearly hit us with that thing!"

"How did you know, anyway?" Riku asked.

You were swaying a little on your feet and instinctively stopped yourself. "Didn't the King tell you? I can sense when a person is about to do something like that. When somebody shoots magic or energy, their power levels rise a lot, and then lower again when they stop. Stop shooting, I mean. That's what I can sense, the rise in their power level."

Sora looked impressed and slightly stumped. "What's a person's power level?"

You were about to respond, but before you realized what was happening you had fallen to your hands and knees. "Maryx!" Riku was down beside you in an instant.

"I'm okay, Riku" you managed to say, though you obviously weren't. A dark mist was swirling around your chest.

"What's happening?" Kairi asked frantically.

"The solar flare thing," you said, holding your forehead. "Takes up a lot of my power…since it uses light…"

"Don't talk," Riku interrupted you. "Try to get your strength back." He twisted around to face Sora and Kairi. "You guys go back to the palace and tell Mulan that the trouble's over. We'll catch up later."

"Are you sure?" Sora asked, looking at you.

"Yes," he said firmly.

"Well...okay then." Sora and Kairi ran down the path that lead back to the palace and were soon out of sight.

"Riku, I'm fine," you insisted.

"No, you're not," he said.

"Yes I am!" You tried to get up, but as soon as you stood your legs gave away and you fell back down. Riku caught you around your waist to break the fall and then let go, blushing a little. "Just stay still for a while," he repeated. Realizing that he wasn't going to back down, you did as he said.

A little later you looked up at him. "I can probably walk now, Riku," you said.

"Alright." With his help, you were able to stand, although you stumbled when you tried to walk. "You still can't walk on your own," he frowned.

"I'll be fine," you started, but he cut you off again. "Just lean on me, alright?" he said. Once again, you realized he wasn't going to change his mind.

**Riku's POV**

_'I_ _can't believe I grabbed her like that,_' you thought as you and Maryx walked down the path back to the palace. Maryx had one arm around your shoulders and was leaning on you, but you could tell she purposely wasn't putting her whole body weight on you. '_She's more stubborn than I am_.'

You smiled ruefully at the thought.

**Your POV**

You glanced up at Riku and saw that he was smiling. "What's so funny?" you asked curiously.

He smothered his smile hastily. "Nothing…just thinking that you're pretty stubborn."

"Hmm."

After a moment he said, "Hey Maryx? I know you don't like to, well you know, talk about your past and all that, but how did you get to be this way?"

"What'd you mean?" You frowned.

"I mean," he said, "why are you so guarded? Why can't you just trust us?"

You stopped walking so he and to pause as well. "I already told you," you said carefully, not wanting to betray any emotion, "I _will_ tell you, when the time comes."

"But why should you wait?" Riku asked, running his hand through his hair.

"Because I'm just that way."

"We told you about us, there's nothing stopping you from telling…"

"Alright, if you want to know why I'm the way I am, the short answer is that I went through a lot three years ago, and because of that I just instinctively don't trust people. What I went through made not telling anyone what I was going through a force of habit. Okay?" You avoided his gaze and added, "Now just drop it and I'll tell you the whole story _some other time._"

After a moment of silence you spoke up again. "I can walk now," you said, and started walking down the path again on your own. "Thanks for helping me along and all that." When you turned around you saw that Riku was still standing in the same spot and gazing at you. "Aren't you coming, Riku?"

He shook his head as if to clear it. "Um…yeah, right." The two of you ran down the path in silence, with him glancing at you every few seconds.

* * *

That evening, you and Riku were standing in front of the Emperor in the throne room with Sora. Kairi was standing to the side with Mulan and Shang.

"You have done our whole population a great deed," the Emperor said. "Added to the acts of justice that you have done in the past for our land, I am forever in debt to you." A young girl wearing a long red cheongsam stepped forward and handed the Emperor a bronze sword shaped like a lightning bolt. "The least we can do," he continued, "is to grant you possession of this sword. To us, it is a symbol of righteousness and heroism, so it is only right that it should be in your hands."

Extending his arm he offered the sword to Riku. As he grasped it, there was a bright light. When it faded there was a key that looked exactly like the water key in its place, except it was orange and yellow. "The fire key!" Sora exclaimed. Riku grinned, Kairi clapped, and even you smiled.

"I presume that this key is what you came here for," the Emperor said.

"Yes," Riku confirmed.

"Well then, take it with my blessing," he said. "And may you have good fortune with your mission in the future."

* * *

"Fifteen hours until we reach Olympus Coliseum," Riku said after you took off again. At Sora's insistence, the four of you had stayed one more day to talk to Mulan and Shang about their wedding, and then had returned to the Gummi Ship.

"I still wish we could've stayed longer," Sora said, playing with a blue bouncy ball.

"This isn't a social mission Sora," Riku said as he took a seat next to you.

"Riku's right," you agreed. "We can't stay and chat to people when we have a job to complete."

"Finally," Riku said, "a fighter with common sense."

"Hey," Kairi pouted, "what about me?"

"You're not a fighter!" he and Sora at the same time, and laughed.

"Yeah yeah," she grinned.


	9. Don't Kill Me!

**Recap:**

"Seven hours until we reach Olympus Coliseum," Riku said after you took off again. At Sora's insistence, the four of you had stayed a little longer to talk to Mulan and Shang about their wedding, and then had returned to the Gummi Ship.

"I still wish we could've stayed longer," Sora said, playing with a blue bouncy ball.

"This isn't a social mission Sora," Riku said as he took a seat next to you.

"Riku's right," you agreed. "We can't stay and chat to people when we have a job to complete."

"Finally," Riku said, "a fighter with common sense."

"Hey," Kairi pouted, "what about me?"

"You're not a fighter!" he and Sora at the same time.

"Yeah yeah," she grinned.

**STORY STARTS:**

"What's the time, Riku?" Sora asked.

Riku sighed. "For the eighteenth time, it's fifteen minutes past noon, Sora," he replied without looked up from him iPod.

"I've never heard of anyone who could ask the time eighteen times in three minutes," you commented over your book.

"Yup!" Sora grinned, "I'm one of a kind!"

"One kind we could live without," said Riku joke.

"Whatever," you said. You shut your book and stood up. "I'm going to read where I can actually hear myself think." You left as Sora was saying, "Riku, there's still one hour and forty-five minutes, right?"

In your room, you made sure the door was shut, and then you put your book down and rummaged through your duffel bag for something buried underneath your clothes. Finally, you produced what looked like a folded piece of paper. You unfolded it and leaned back against your pillows against the wall to examine it.

The picture was a little old, dating four years back. It showed you in a forest at thirteen years old, wearing dark blue skinny jeans, a loose navy T-shirt, and strappy purple sandals. You were sitting with your back against a towering tree, holding a book.

Also sitting next to you against the tree was a eleven year old girl with long, dark brown hair tied back in really low pigtails, wearing black skinny jeans and a baggy off-the-shoulder dark purple top with three-quarter length sleeves. She was looking up from a sketchbook at you and holding a pencil in one hand. Standing to the side was an even younger boy, about eight years old with the same dark brown hair, wearing a red T-shirt and jeans standing confidently on a rock in a super-hero pose. You and the boy were grinning, and the girl with the sketchbook was smiling shyly. You and the girl had the same expressive brown eyes, but the boy had one purple eye and one blue eye.

'_That was just a few days before it happened,_' you thought. You had been staring at the picture for some time recalling memories when someone knocked on the door. "Maryx, are you in there?"

You hastily folded the picture again and stuffed it underneath a pillow. "It's open Kairi," you said. Kairi came in and sat down at the foot of the bed. "Sora wanted to know if you had any bouncy balls. I told him you wouldn't but he…hey," she held up your book, which was still on the bed next to you, and looked at you curiously. "It looked like you haven't read a thing since you left…what have you been doing for the last half an hour?"

"Half an hour?" you glanced at your watch. _'Had I been looking at that picture for that long?'_ you wondered. "Um…I had shut the book when I left and I started in the wrong spot, then when I found the right page I decided to fool around with one of my bouncy balls."

"_You _have bouncy balls?" Kairi asked incredulously. "You actually own bouncy balls?

'_Hah, that's what she said!' _"Uh…yes, yes I do," you said, pulling two out of the pocket of your duffel bag, one was orange and yellow, the other was red. "I was actually going to come back anyway; I'll go with you now," you added, getting up and heading out the door.

In the main room you threw the red ball to Sora, who was asking Riku what the time was. Again. "_You _have bouncy balls? You actually own bouncy balls?" Riku said laughing, not stopping when you glared at him.

"I said the same thing," Kairi said as she sat down next to Sora.

"Word for word," you confirmed as you sat next to Riku and started throwing the orange and yellow ball in the air and catching it. "And Sora, if you ask what the time is again within the next twenty minutes, then I will draw a picture of you licking your Keyblade clean and send it to the King with a caption saying: 'This is how Sora gets his Keyblade so shiny…really.'" You ended by throwing the ball at him.

Sora yelped a little. "Ah…o-okay."

"_Thank _you," Riku said to you. "Why didn't I think of that earlier?"

"'Cuz you can't draw to save your life," Sora said. Before he could respond he changed the subject. "Hey Maryx? You know how you said you might 'tell us about your past some other time' when we first met you?"

"Yeah..." you said slowly.

"You should tell us now!" Sora said. "It'll pass the time."

"When I said some other time," you responded, "I meant longer than a few weeks."

"Yeah but..."

"Drop it, Sora," Riku interrupted. Sora pouted but left the topic and started tossing the ball back and forth with Kairi. "I didn't tell him," he whispered when you gave him a look.

You relaxed and smiled. "Thanks.

* * *

"Five minutes until we land," Riku said, checking to time on his iPod. Sora hadn't asked what the time was again. Hah. Riku looked up to see Sora throwing all three balls at your head over and over to see when you'd look up from your book, which he'd been doing for the past twenty minutes. "Sora, would you just put away those bouncy balls?"

"Shhhhh!" Sora hissed. "I think she's gonna react any moment now!"

"I'd have shoved those balls down your throat fifteen minutes ago, but two of them are mine and yours is a neat colour," you said, without looking up. "And for the millionth time, _I'm not deaf._"

Riku snatched the bouncy balls of Sora. "There, that was a reaction."

"Maryx, you're not gonna send a picture of me licking my Keyblade to the King, are you?" Sora asked, looking worried.

You rolled your eyes. "No, Sora."

"I'll be back," Kairi said, walking slowly out of the room.

"What's up with her?" you asked.

"What was that about, Kai?" Sora asked when she came back a minute later.

"Oh, nothing," she said. "I just took some aspirin."

"You okay?" Sora asked, looking concerned.

"It's fine you guys," she said, "it's just a headache. I'm already feeling better."

Riku shook his head. "Kairi, Maryx's hiding-my-woes-and-sorrows act better not be rubbing off on you."

"Don't worry, it takes a lot to become like me," you said without thinking.

"What does that mean?" Sora asked instantly.

"Nothing," you replied smoothly. "It would just take some time for a person to go from Kairi to me."

"Good point," Riku said. Sora opened his mouth to add something, but Riku shot him a look, making him shut it again.

"Ready for landing in Olympus Coliseum," a robotic voice said, saving you from saying more. _'How many times has Riku totally saved me from saying too much?_' you thought. You glanced over at him and saw him looking at you. You smiled at each other a little then looked away again before Kairi caught you and started saying something._'And why don't I feel uncomfortable that I told him?_' you wondered for the millionth time.

Soon Riku had landed the Gummi Ship and you, Sora and Riku were walking up the stairs of the underworld. Kairi had stayed back at the ship since she was still feeling a little sick. It was actually a good thing se didn't come; she probably wouldn't have lasted the climb up all these stairs. "How many stairs are there anyway?" you groaned. Not that you were tired, but it was an awful lot of stairs.

"Two-hundred and seventy-six more to go," Sora said automatically.

"You've _counted_?" Riku asked.

"_Yes_," he said.

"Whatever," you said. "I mean, I _really _want to climb up two hundred plus stairs and all, but..." You held out your hands to the boys. "Grab on."

They caught hold of your hands cautiously, not sure of what you were doing. In less than a second you had moved yourself and the boys to the top of the stairs. "Why didn't you just do that from the start?" Riku asked, looking agitated.

You smiled innocently back at him. "I wanted to stretch my legs."

"Hey, Sora!" A super-short half-goat man with a pudgy face, pig nose, and yelled to Sora once the three of you had walked into a sunny training area. Next to him stood a young, strong-looking man that looked like he had been working out.

Sora ran up to them, with you and Riku following. "Hi Phil! Hi Herc!" he said cheerfully, bumping fists with the strong-looking guy.

When you and Riku joined him, you looked the half-goat man up and down. "What are you?" you questioned flatly.

"What am I..._WHAT am I_?" Phil yelled. "I'm Phil, the trainer. that's WHO I am. Who are you?"

"Guys, this is Riku," Sora started.

"Oh, so he's the one you were talking about all the time?" the strong-looking man asked.

"Yeah," Sora confirmed, looking sheepish.

"What did you say about me?" said Riku threateningly.

"All good things, don't worry man," the man said grinning. "Mostly stuff about how good a fighter you are and how Sora was looking for you."

"And," Sora continued, "this is Maryx. The King sent her to help us in our mission. Riku, Maryx, this is Hercules" he pointed to the strong-looking man, "and Phil," he pointed to the half-goat man.

"Hey there," Hercules said, smiling.

"Hi," you and Riku said.

"Nice to meet you," Phil said, looking like that was the last thing he meant. "And for your information, Maryx, I'm way stronger than you," he added.

"Stronger than me?" you repeated, smirking.

"Don't get her angry Phil," Sora warned him.

"Maryx is really strong," Riku put in. "_Really _strong. She could probably blow up this place without even trying."

"I wouldn't do that," you said indignantly. "I could, but I wouldn't!"

"Listen, have you seen any Organization XIII members around here?" Sora asked, changing the subject.

"Maybe stirring up trouble?" Riku said.

"Or threatening people?" you added.

"Yes, yes, and yes," Hercules said. "In the past few days this person keeps showing up and making trouble. We were wondering if you'd show up to help out."

"Just yesterday he disrupted a match in the arena!" Phil growled, looking annoyed again . "It was the perfect match, Hercules versus one of our other champs. Had the crowd going wild! And then some black-cloaked fellow shows up, raises his hands, and these mini-lighting bolts started raining down! Everyone left! All that money, gone," he snapped his fingers, "just like that!"

"And later on there was another match," Hercules continued, "between two other champions. It had just finished, when the person showed up again, and froze the winner!"

"Froze him?" the three on you repeated.

He nodded. "Then he said to everyone, 'Do what we say or you'll end up like him', and then he vanished. Worst part is that the ice won't melt."

"That's terrible," Sora said.

"Well, one thing's for sure," you said, "the person who pulled the lightning stunt isn't the same as the one who froze that man."

"It isn't?" Phil asked.

"She's right," Riku agreed. "The lightning one is probably Larxene, and the one who froze that guy was most likely Vexen."

"No need for introductions then," said a voice.

"YOU!" yelled Phil, looking behind you. You turned around to see Larxene and a creepy looking man with long platinum blond hair standing at a distance behind you. Before you could get out your Keyblade they disappeared. "Try and find us!" Larxene laughed as they vanished in a swirl of dark mist.

"Come on!" Sora said. "they probably went back to the Underworld!"

"Right." The three of you started running back to the stairs.

"Herc, you better stay behind," Sora called, running backwards. "These people are really dangerous; if you've got a match coming up, you don't wanna get hurt."

"Darn straight," Phil said. "You're not going anywhere, champ."

"Whoa, wait," Riku said. You groaned in protest as you ran into Sora when he stopped. "Sora, didn't you say something about the Underworld draining a person's energy?"

"That's true," Hercules confirmed, "but remember - we defeated Hades, Sora. You shouldn't have any affect from being in the Underworld; Phil and I have been down there a few times and nothing's happened!"

* * *

"Where could they've gone?" asked Riku. You were now in the Underworld. To your left was a green door, and on your right was a blue door.

"I'll go this way," you said, pointing towards the green door, "and you guys go the other way. It's not likely that they'll both be in the same place."

"Oh no," Riku shook his head. "You're not going on your own!"

You rolled your eyes slightly. "I'll be fine_. _I can take on either of them alone."

"You probably can," Sora said, looking serious for a change, "but it's _really_ easy to get lost in here. And besides, you could get hurt."

"He's right, for once," Riku said.

"For once?"

"I'll go alone, and you go with Sora," he finished, ignoring the brunette.

"No," you said firmly. "I can take care of myself!"

"We know that," said Riku, "but you're _not_ going on your own." Without waiting for you to argue back, he ran to the blue doors and went through.

"Asshole," you muttered.

"Let's go, Maryx!" Sora cheered. He went through the green doors, with you reluctantly following him.

* * *

"We're never going to find them, Sora," you declared after wandering around the Underworld for an hour.

"Sure we will!" Sora said, perkier than ever. "We'll find them any minute now!"

"Oh yeah," you replied drily as you climbed up a staircase leading out of the Atrium, "one of them is hiding behind this corner at the top of the stairs right now, just waiting for us to pop up..." You were cut off by a stream of ice zooming past your ear. Standing in front of you was Vexen himself, wielding his Frozen Pride shield.

"Oh my gosh, I predicted the future," you commented emotionlessly.

Vexen smirked as he created some sort of barrier around the exits. "You must be Maryx," he said smoothly.

"How do you know my name?" you demanded.

"Kaori told me," he informed you, smiling when you visibly stiffened.

"Kairi? When did you see Kairi?" Sora asked.

You ignored him. "Don't talk crap," you snarled at Vexen.

"Ah, but Maryx, A scientist always speaks the truth," Vexen said.

"Yeah right!" you scoffed. _'Even his voice is creepy!'_ you thought.

"And I said Kaori, not Kairi," Vexen added for Sora's benefit.

Sora looked at you. "Who's Kaori?"

"None of your business!" you snapped at him.

"Aha!" Vexen's smirk became more evil. "I've hit a nerve, have I?" He waved his shield in the air. "You don't have to worry, dear. Kaori is alive, but Ryu is definitely dead."

"Just...shut up!" you yelled, frustrated at how you were losing control.

"I'll give you both two choices," Vexen said. "Join us, or perish."

"Could it be a little simpler please?" said Sora sarcastically. "In your dreams, Vexen!"

"Yeah," you said determinedly.

Vexen sighed, as if you had given him a huge job to do. "Very well..." Suddenly large chunks of ice rose up from the ground, freezing Sora solid.

"Hey!" you yelled.

"Better make this quick," Vexen grinned sinisterly. "Take too long and the poor boy will die."

_'That bastard,'_ you thought, and rushed at him, catching him by surprise. You soon realized that it was impossible to hit him from the front because of his shield, so you attacked him from behind. He shrieked like a little girl and ran further away, then started shooting ice at you swiftly. You dodged all the ice easily and came up behind him again, whacking him with your Keyblade. Back and forth you went, exchanging blows, losing track of time.

At first you had thought the fight would be easy, but now you'd changed your mind. Vexen kept making the ground slippery with ice, making it hard to walk or run. When you slipped, he hit you hard with his shield, sending you flying through the air. A few times he caught you by surprise by turning his shield into a sword, landing many attacks on you with it. _'This is taking too long,'_ you realized, glancing at Sora, who was still frozen. As you were distracted, Vexen created a blizzard that you couldn't avoid.

He turned his shield into a sword again and started attacking you while you were still stunned by the blizzard attack, and he managed to get two deep cuts on your upper arm. "Screw this," you muttered. Ignoring the pain in your arm, you managed to fend off his attacks and moved away from him. You summoned as much strength as you could, raised your arms, put your hands together, and took a deep breath. A small glowing ball with sparks of electrified energy snapping around it formed in your hands. "Masenko!" you yelled.

A huge bolt of energy erupted out of the ball, blasting into Vexen and slamming him into a wall. "_No!"_he screamed as he began to fade.

"Oh, crap!" you said. You had forgotten that you needed Sora to shoot him. Thinking quickly, you formed a small ball of energy in your hand and flung it at Sora, ignoring the fact that it could severely injure him. Luckily, the ice started to crack, and you risked another shot. This time the ice shattered completely and Sora stood there, shivering but otherwise unharmed. "Sora, shoot him!" you said.

"What?" Sora asked looking dazed.

"Vexen! He's fading! Shoot him, now!"

"Oh yeah, right!" He summoned his Keyblade and shot Vexen just in time. Vexen screamed, then he was gone. Around you, the barriers that had blocked the exits went down.

You and Sora stood there in silence for a moment. "He was creepier than that guy with loads of skin on his face," Sora said finally.

"You mean Leatherface?" you laughed. You glanced at Sora and saw that he was still shivering. "Hey, are you okay, Sora?" you asked.

"Eh, I'll be fine. Good thing you broke the ice when you did, 'cuz I was getting really...whoa!" He grabbed your right arm and you winced a little, since that was the one that had the deep cuts. "Did he do that?"

"No, it was the Angel of Death." You started walking back swiftly in what you thought was the direction you had come from without waiting for him. "It'll be fine."

"It'll be fine?" Sora yelped, jogging after you. "Maryx, those cut s are deep!"

"It's not _that _deep. And besides, it doesn't even hurt," you lied, since it was actually throbbing like crazy.

"Well, I'll try and cure them for you!" he said. He tried to heal the cuts, but nothing happened.

"Maybe you used up too much magic when you shot the Creepy/Perverted Scientist back there," you suggested.

Sora laughed. "I don't have any potions on me," he said, "but Riku might have some! We better go back. He's probably waiting for us. Why are you just standing there anyway?"

"What...you're the one who stopped me while I was...oh, whatever." You began walking again. "Let's get out of here."

As the two of you walked back to the Underworld entrance, with Sora insisting that he knew the way, he looked as if he were about to burst. After he had actually gotten red in the face, you sighed. "What is it, Sora?" you asked tiredly, knowing you were going to regret asking.

He shook his head violently. "You're gonna kill me if I ask!"

"No, I won't." You rolled your eyes. "What's up?"

Sora hesitated then said in a rush, "WhoareKaoriandRyu?"

You stopped in your tracks and turned to looked at him slowly. Then you summoned you Keyblade and pointed it at his head. "Don't kill me!" Sora yelped.

"Never," you said slowly through your teeth as you stepped forward, making him back up against a wall, "and I mean _never_, ever ask me that question again. _Got it_?"

Sora gulped loudly. "O-okay, Maryx."

"Swear it!" you snapped.

"I swear!" he said hurridly. "I swear I will never ask who Kaori and Ryu are again!"

Gradually you let your arm fall had made you Keyblade disappear. "Come on," you said coldly. "Riku's probably waiting for us." Two seconds later you stopped again as a sudden thought struck you. "What is it?" Sora asked cautiously.

"If Riku ran into Larxene," you said, "how's he going to shoot her?"

**RIKU'S POV**

**_*Flashback*_**

You walked into Hades Chamber, slightly bored from searching through a whole section of the Underworld by yourself. Suddenly something kicked you in the back, flinging you into the wall. You pushed yourself up with some difficulty to see Larxene smirking at you from where you had been standing. "Oops," she said sarcastically. "Didn't see you there, Riku."

"I was beginning to think you ran away," you smirked, summoning Way To Dawn.

"Less talk, more kicking your ass," said Larxene. She formed electricity-infused knives in her fingers and started flinging them at you. You managed to dodge or block them with your Keyblade, then you started attacking her. Mostly she would summon lightning to fall on you, stinging your skin where they made contact. Then she'd either throw her knives at you or use them as claws. After a long time, you finally got the upperhand, and ruthlessly attacked her. Just you thought the fight was over, she kicked you hard in the chest, and you flew back across the room again. You pretended to lie there, and when she came up to you, you lashed out at her, making her loose her balance.

While she was still surprised you attacked her rapidly with your Keyblade. After a little while she made lightning rain down again, but you summoned a Dark Shield all around you, instead of just in the front, making the sparks bounce back onto Larxene. Soon she was on the ground fading away. "Crap!" you said. You had forgotten that you needed Sora to shoot her.

Instinctively, you swung your Keyblade and pointed it at Larxene, hoping for the best. To your surprise, a beam of light shot out of the tip of the Way To Dawn and headed straight at her. "No!" she shrieked. "You're a loser! This can't be happening!" The light hit her and she screamed as she faded away completely.

For a second you just stared at your Keyblade. '_Huh...so it doesn't have to be the Kingdom Key.'_

***_End of flashback*_**

You had been sitting around the Underworld Entrance sometime, waiting for Maryx and Sora to get back, thinking about how you had managed to shoot Larxene with your Way to Dawn. Finally, you looked up as you heard the green doors opening and saw Sora and Maryx running towards you.

**Your POV**

Riku stood up as the two of you ran towards him. "Where's Larxene?" Sora asked before Riku could say anything. "Is she dead? You didn't kill her, did you? Oh man, she's dead and she wasn't shot!"

"Calm down," Riku said, struggling not to laugh at Sora's ranting. "It turns out that I can shoot them as they fade as well. She's dead, and she's not coming back."

"You shot her?" Sora grinned. "Finally, I don't have to do all the work!"

"All the work?" you repeated. "I had to fight Vexen myself because you were a frozen block! All you did was shoot him after I broke the ice around you!"

"Sora's always slacking off," Riku laughed. Then he noticed the blood that was seeping through your fingers where you were clutching your arm. "Vexen did that?"

"Yeah, he managed to cut me. Before you say that it's serious," you added since he was opening his mouth to say something, "I just need a potion and it'll be fine. I already got the whole lecture from Sora."

"Well, I have one." He pulled a green bottle out of his pocket and handed it to you. You drank it, and immediately the cut closed up.

"See?" You shoved Sora lightly. "I didn't need an operation! Thank you, Riku."

"Why would anoyone need an operation for cuts?" Riku asked, more to himself than to Sora.

You smirked a little. "That's what I said."

"Yeah yeah," Sora said, trying to end the conversation. "We better tell Herc and Phil that we got rid of Vexen and Larxene. Can you get us up to the top of the stairs, Maryx? Pleeeeeeeeeease?"

"You're so lazy," you muttered as you grabbed their arms to transport them.

* * *

Back in the arena, the three of you told Phil and Hercules about Vexen and Larxene. "I knew it!" Phil exclaimed, pounding his chest with his fist. "I _ knew _Sora could do it!"

"Sora didn't do anything!" Riku protested.

"Yeah! He just stood there frozen!" you said. "Literally, Vexen froze him! Riku and I did _all_ the work!"

"Sure, girly," Phil scoffed, then pointed at Riku. "I know this kid could, but you killed one of them? You don't have to brag."

_ 'If looks could kill that pig-man would be writhing on the ground begging for mercy,'_ you thought grimly.

"Hey, it's true Phil! They did everything!" Sora said.

"It doesn't matter who did what," Hercules interrupted. "The point is that the problem's solved, thank to you guys!"

"We really can't repay you enough," Meg said, coming up to Hercules and leaning on his arm.

"Meg! Hi!" Sora exclaimed.

"Nice to see you again, Sora," Meg smiled. "Is this the one?" she added, handed Phil a trophy.

"That's the one," he said. He held the trophy up so you could all see. It was a bronze statue of a man holding up a winner's wreath. "This trophy," he explained, "is given to the ones who save the arena..."

"And Phil's money," Hercules added, grinning.

"_And _my money," Phil agreed. You, Sora, and Riku tried not to laugh. "So seems fair that it should be given to you _three_," he stressed, glaring at you.

Sora reached out to take the trophy before you could strangle Phil. As he made contact with it, it shone brightly. When the light faded there was a gold-coloured key that looked exactly like the other two keys.

"The light key!" Sora said.

"Wow, really? We never would've guessed," you said drily, rolling your eyes.

"This is actually what we came for," Riku informed Hercules, Phil, and Meg.

"Then you should clear outta here!" Phil yelled, making you all jump. "People are coming here for a match, they don't wanna see you!" You glanced around and noticed that a number of people were taking seats in the arena.

"Always the welcoming type, aren't you Phil?" Meg said, then turned to look at Sora. "The people are all coming to see Wonder-boy here win another fight."

"Can we watch?" Sora asked, looking excited.

"_No _Sora," Riku said.

"We'd love to," you told Hercules, "but we really have to get going."

"You two are spoilsports," Sora pouted. Then he suddenly looked concerned. "Kairi!"

"What? Where?" Riku asked, looking around.

"I forgot! She's waiting for us to come back!" Sora said. He high-fived Hercules. "Sorry, Herc, but we gotta go." Randomly he glomped a surprised Meg. "Bye Meg!"

"Is he high or something?" you muttered to yourself.

"Hey, no glomping my wife!" Hercules said, grinning and pulling Meg away from Sora.

Sora's jaw dropped. "Now _you _two are married?"

"Good Lord, not this again," you groaned.


	10. First To Say Sorry

**RECAP:**

Meg turned to look at Sora. "They're all coming to see Wonder-boy here win another fight."

"Can we watch?" Sora asked, looking excited.

"_No_ Sora," Riku said.

"We'd love to," you told Hercules, "but we really have to get going."

"You two are spoilsports," Sora pouted. Then he suddenly looked concerned. "Kairi!"

"What? Where?" Riku asked, looking around.

"I forgot! She's waiting for us to come back!" Sora said. He high-fived Hercules. "Sorry, Herc, but we gotta go." Randomly he glomped a surprised Meg. "Bye Meg!"

"Is he high or something?" you muttered to yourself.

"Hey, no glomping my wife!" Hercules said, grinning and pulling Meg away from Sora.

Sora's jaw dropped. "Now _you_ two are married?"

"Good Lord, not this again," Riku groaned.

**STORY STARTS:**

You and Riku finally managed to tear Sora away from Meg and Hercules, saving them from his wedding questions. "Good luck finding the rest of those keys, you guys!" Hercules called out as Riku dragged Sora back to the Gummi Ship.

"Why is _everyone_ getting married?" Sora whined once you were back in the Gummi Ship.

"I really don't know Sora" Riku said. "Stop asking me."

Kairi entered the room looking pale and drawn. "Hey you're back," she said, smiling faintly.

"Kairi_?_ What's wrong?" Sora exclaimed.

"I think I'm sick," she murmured before fainting. Luckily Sora ran up and caught her before to fell to the floor. _'You're sick?_' you thought. '_Gosh, we didn't realize, Kairi..._'

"Don't say it," Riku warned you as he followed Sora, who was carrying Kairi, into the hallway.

You followed them into your room, where they were putting her on the bed. "Say what?"

"You were going to say something sarcastic," he replied.

"No I wasn't!" you said, even though you had thought it.

"You were thinking it, then?"

"Whatever," you muttered. "Does she have a fever, Sora?"

Sora felt her forehead. "It feels really warm," he said, looking worried.

You looked at his flushed face and noticed that his eyes were a little red, and he looked slightly dazed. "Sora, are you okay?" you asked him.

"What?" he said, obviously faking. "Of course I'm okay. Why wouldn't I be okay? It's not like I'm sick or something," he added, laughing nervously.

Riku shook his head. "Sora, I've known you for years, and that is the most obviously lie you've ever told."

You reached out and felt Sora's forehead. "You're sick too," you accused him. "Why didn't you say something?"

"I didn't think it was serious!" Sora said.

You rolled his eyes. "Common knowledge: most people tend to think that if it comes with a fever, it's serious."

"Come on," Riku said, dragging him by the arm out of the room. "You're going to bed."

"Although," you said, pausing, "would a potion cure it?"

"Yeah!" Sora agreed. "All I need is a potion or an elixir or something!"

"Potions don't cure sicknesses," Riku said. "Neither does Curaga."

"Ha!" you said as Riku pulled him into his room, and you made him sit on the bed. "Now you have no choice Sora. You've got the flu."

"No I don't!" he insisted.

"Yes you do," you and Riku said at the same time.

"But I gotta help save the worlds!" Sora complained.

"Oh, boo-hoo," you said unsympathetically.

Riku nudged you a little. "Maryx and I can manage the mission for a while on our own," he said.

"But..."

"Sora, just think about it," you said reasonably. "If you rest properly, you'll get better really fast and you can fight. If you act stubborn and don't rest, you'll just get worse and you'll miss out on more than you would if you'd have rested."

Sora made a face. "You're too sensible," he groaned.

"In other words," you added, "get some rest or you're going to wish you were in a coma instead." Sora hurridly got under the covers of his bed and turned on his side so he was facing away from you. "You're scary," he said, his voice muffled by the pillow

Riku laughed a little and the two of you left the room. "Just like a seven year-old," he said to you in the hallway. "Minus your last comment."

You smiled a little as you opened the door to your room. '_Yeah...just like a seven year-old...'_

Kairi had regained consciousness and was sitting upright, rubbing her head. "Kairi, you shouldn't be sitting up," you said, pushing her back down.

"Sora's sick too," Riku told her, "and you know how he is; Maryx had to resort to threats to make him rest."

That made Kairi laugh. You stayed and talked to her for a few hours while Riku hung out with Sora. Later, you and Riku met in the hallway again.

"A word of warning if you decide to talk with Sora," Riku said, "he's pretty grouchy."

"Thanks," you grinned. "Kairi wouldn't stop _talking_. I mean, if you have a sore throat, why would you talk?"

Riku laughed but then stopped and groaned. "What's wrong?" you asked.

"The Gummi Ship never took off," he replied. "I didn't start it up."

"Oh, real genius," you said, rolling your eyes as you walked into the main room.

"I didn't see you remembering either," he shot back, punching a few buttons.

You lost your balance and fell onto one of the seats as the Gummi Ship took off, but got up before Riku noticed. "It's not my job."

"It's not mine either!"

"Why do you do it then?"

"Because Sora's the only other one who knows how to."

"Hog," you muttered, at a loss for anything else to say. You sat down on the seat again. Riku opened his mouth to say something, but then shook his head and sat down opposite you.

_ 'Why do I still act this way around him?_' you wondered frustrated. _'I don't feel shy around Sora and Kairi anymore...so why only with him?'_ You sighed and pulled your iPod out of your pocket. After a few minutes of silence you asked, "Where are we going next, anyway?"

Riku was obviously trying not to smirk. "Beast's Castle," he said. "We'll be there in sixteen hours."

"Why are you smirking?" you asked him, annoyed.

"No reason," he said quickly, looking down at his iPod hurridly.

You tried to think of something to say but before you could come up with anything a white portal popped up and King Mickey stepped out of it. "Hi, Your Majesty!" you exclaimed.

"Hey Mickey," Riku said, surprised. "What's wrong? Has something happened?"

"Nothin's wrong," the King said, smiling. "I just thought I'd drop by and make sure that you two hadn't strangled each other yet."

"I wouldn't strangle Riku!" you said, trying to look innocent.

"That's true," he admitted, "You'd probably just kick him over and over."

You blushed a little while Riku cracked up. "That would be so mature," you said drily.

The King shook his head and looked around. "Where's Sora?"

"He's in bed recovering," Riku informed him.

He looked a little worried. "Gosh, was he annoying Maryx?" he asked anxiously. Riku started laughing again.

"Very funny, Your Majesty," you muttered, but you were smiling a little. "He's sick. So is Kairi. They're both resting."

"We think it's the flu," Riku added.

"Gosh," the King said sympathetically. "That's too bad!"

"Apparently Sora did piss off Maryx though!" Riku said, smirking again. "He said when we split up to search two sections of the Underworld, she got out her Keyblade and threatened to kill him if he mentioned me and Kairi."

'_What I wouldn't give to wipe that smirk off his face_,' you thought, glaring at him.

"Why'd ya do that?" the King asked you in bewilderment.

You rolled your eyes. "I didn't say _that_," you said pointedly, "I told him not to mention Kaori and Ryu, not Kairi and Riku."

"Who are they?" Riku asked instantly.

"No one," you replied just as fast. "Didn't Sora tell you anything?"

"He said you nearly killed him," he said.

"Oh please," you scoffed. "Why the hell would I kill him for asking who some random people were?"

"Fellas," the King warned. You both ignored him, and Riku crossed his arms. "I don't know, Maryx," he said. "Why _would_ you kill him for asking that?"

"I wasn't going to _kill_ him" you insisted in annoyance. "I just don't like talking about them."

"Why?" he asked, looking really frustrated.

"Just _because_," you said vaguely.

"I'll go check on Sora," the King said, backing out of the room. Neither of you noticed.

Riku ran his hands through his hair. "God, what is it with you? What could've happened that was so bad, it made you threaten other people lives just because they mentioned two _names_?"

"I told you about this already," you spat out. "I. Don't. Like. Talking. About it."

He looked at you with fake sympathy. "Aw, did someone ask if you had a bad day? Or did someone mess up your hair back then? No, wait, maybe someone _cared_ about you? Was that it Maryx?"

"You're such a fucking asshole!" you said, your voice raised.

"Well, you're a bitch!" he yelled back. "At least I don't push away the people that care about me and act like a jerk all the time because of some daft thing that happened years ago!"

"At least I don't pester people with questions over and over when I know that they obviously don't like answering them!" you screamed. Suddenly you heard a sharp sound and a stinging pain on your cheek. You touched your face, stunned, and stared at Riku, who was now standing there looking shocked. '_He slapped me!'_

"Maryx," he started to say. Just then King Mickey entered the room again.

"What was that noise?" he asked, looking back and forth between the two of you. He noticed how you were still fingering your face, and you realized that your cheek must be red. "Riku..."

You didn't stay to hear the rest. Ignoring the pain in your cheek, you grabbed you iPod from your seat and abruptly left the room.

**Riku's POV**

'_What are you saying? Why are you arguing with her?'_ a voice in your head was screaming at you as you started yelling at Maryx without thinking. When she started yelling about what a jerk you were and how you pester her with questions, you just lost it. You raised your hand and, before you knew it, you had slapped her in the face.

She looked totally shocked and hurt, and you realized what you had said and done. Then when the King came back in, her face immediately went hard and she left the room without a word.

"Riku, what was all that about?" the King asked. "Did you just hit her?"

You sank down into one of the seats and put your head in your hands. "I wasn't thinking!" you groaned. "I didn't even know what I was saying!"

"Aw, don't worry Riku!" he said cheerfully. "Maryx will get over it soon enough. In fact if ya go and apologise to her right now, she'll probably forget all about it!"

You slowly looked up at the King. "You know I would," you responded, "but I can't."

King Mickey looked surprised. "Why not?"

"It's...it's my pride," you said. "I can't apologize to her when it was her fault! She's the one who went berserk because I asked her a few questions!" Even as you said it, you could see how pathetic it sounded.

"Really?" asked the King. "It seemed like she didn't want to tell ya about...Kaori and Ryu, was it?" You nodded numbly. "Besides, if ya asked her so many times, she must've told ya _somethin_' about her past!"

You nodded again, suddenly remembering what she had said in the Land of Dragons. "She told me that something drastic happened to her about three years ago, and because of that she doesn't trust anyone."

"Well, there ya go!" he said. "She never told me anythin' about her past, and you know she was stayin' with me for nearly a year! I'm surprised that she'd tell ya that, even though it's only a lil' thing."

"Yeah, I know," you said. "But I just don't think I can apologise, Mickey."

The King sighed. "Well, at least try to put up with each other, okay? Your mission is far too important to mess up just because of a silly argument."

Later on the King went to talk to Maryx. All you managed to hear was Maryx yelling, "What?"

_'He must've told her to apologize to me,'_ you thought.

**Your POV**

You went into your room and slammed the door. Kairi opened her eyes and stared at you. "What's the matter?" she asked. "Why's your cheek red? Was that Riku yelling earlier?"

"No, it was King Triton," you snapped, sitting on the floor next to your bed and cracking open a book.

"Did he _slap_ you?" she said.

"Of course not, I walked into a door."

"Okay, something's wrong," she said, and started to get out of bed. "Too much sarcasm."

"What? I said two sentences!" you exclaimed. "And don't get out of bed. By the way, did you know the King's here?"

"Really? Why?"

You shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe he just wanted to check up on us, but he said he wanted to make sure Riku and I hadn't strangled each other yet."

Kairi laughed. Just then he came into the room. "Hi, Your Majesty!" Kairi said happily.

"Hiya Kairi!" the King said. "Riku told me you and Sora are sick. I'm sorry!"

Kairi pouted. "Yeah, now Riku and Maryx are forcing me to rest."

"Sora told me," he laughed. "Maryx, can I talk to you?"

You sighed and got up, knowing what this was going to be about. "I'll be right back, Kairi," you said over your shoulder as you left.

King Mickey led you to the end of the hallway, just outside the door to the engine room. "Maryx, ya..."

"Your Majesty, I'm sorry I yelled at Riku," you interrupted him. "But _he_ started it, _and_ he's the one who kept asking me questions even though I already told him a little and he knew I didn't like it, _and_ he's the one who started shouting at me, _and _he's the one that slapped me."

"But you didn't have to react," he replied. "I think you should apologize to him."

"What?" you yelled, then covered your mouth. "Why?" you asked more softly.

He sighed. "Because he's too proud to say sorry. Come to think of it, he's not usually like that at all. But I know he'll make amends if ya apologize to him!"

"Forget it," you said fiercely. "No offence, Your Majesty, but I didn't do anything for him to get pissed off. He didn't even have to start an argument; all I said was I didn't want to say who Kaori and Ryu are! I have a right to my own privacy, don't I?"

"Yes, of course ya do," he said.

You relaxed a little, saying, "If he apologizes to me, I'll definitely say sorry to him!"

"I'm not sure if that'll happen," he said. "But Maryx, at least try to put up with each other, for the sake of the mission?"

"Don't worry," you said, smiling a little, "I was going to. I don't think we'll be talking much though."

"Good," he nodded, smiling as well. "Maybe you should just spend time with Sora and Kairi for the rest of the trip, then you and Riku go search for the wind key in Beast's Castle while I stay here and watch Sora and Kairi."

"Aw, you don't have to do that!" you said - guilty that he was going to take time to look after Sora and Kairi, freaked out that you'd have to be alone with Riku.

"Yes I do!" he insisted. "You shouldn't go to a world all by yourself, and neither should Riku. Besides, maybe you'll make up!"

You rolled your eyes. "I knew that was the base of that plan..."

* * *

For the rest of the trip, you basically keeping Kairi and Sora company and avoiding running into Riku, which was pretty hard to do on a Gummi Ship. But soon the ship landed and you and Riku had to get off.

"Good luck, fellas!" the King called out from the Gummi Ship and slammed the exit door shut, leaving you both in the cold wind outside a towering, gloomy-looking castle. You and Riku avoided looking at each other as you went into the Entrance Hall.

A worried-looking young woman in a blue dress appeared as the doors banged shut behind you. "Hello!" she said brightly. "Who are you?"

"I'm Riku," he said glancing at you, "and this is Maryx. We're friends of Sora."

"Oh!" she said, relaxing. "Thank goodness! There are dozens of...somebodies in the Ballroom?"

"Nobodies," you and Riku corrected simultaneously.

"Right! Dozens of nobodies in the Ballroom!" She looked at both of you anxiously. "Please say you two are fighters!"

"Yeah, we are," you confirmed.

"We'll go deal with it," Riku said, pointing to a large set of doors. "In there, right?"

"Yes!" she said. "Please hurry!"

You both went into the ballroom and were faced by about a hundred Dusks, Dancers, and Berserkers. "That's a lot of dozens," you commented, getting out your Keyblade. Riku did the same and you both started attacking them head on, you and Riku each taking half.

Defeating the Dusks didn't take long, since all you had to do was sneak up behind them and then hack at them. The Berserkers were alright to handle as well, once you realized that you should avoid attacking from the front. But the Dancers were the most difficult. They kept kicking you vigorously then sending you flying through the air. It took you a very long time, but you finally got rid of all of yours.

You looked over at Riku to see that he had gotten rid of most of his half, but four or five Dancers were sliding up from behind him unnoticed, their hands glowing. Before they could strike him you formed a glowing, spinning disc in your hand, like the one that cut of Lexaeus' arm. You flung it at them and it sliced all of them in half. Riku turned around to see them fading away and looked up at you.

"Watch your back," you said simply. He was about to respond when Xigbar appeared in front of you. "Have you been a good boy, Riku?" he asked.

"Nope," he said.

"And this cutie must be Maryx," he said.

"How did you know?" you growled.

"Kaori told me," he replied, smirking exactly like Vexen when you scowled. Riku glanced at you quickly when he heard the name, but didn't say anything.

"Why do you people keep saying that?" you demanded. "Kaori's _dead._"

"Uh-uh-uh," Xigbar said. "The chick's alive and well. For the time being, at least."

Riku probably saw that you were about to pound Xigbar's head into a wall, because he suddenly started attacking him. You blinked a little, then joined him. Xigbar didn't have time to even try and fire any lasers since Riku had caught him by surprise. The two of you hit him with attacks endlessly, and in a few minutes he was fading. "What did you mean by 'she's alive and well for the time being?' you said.

"Hah...wouldn't you like to know?" he replied, laughing. Before he disappeared completely Riku shot him, then he was gone.

"I'm not even going to _think_ of asking you what he was on about," Riku informed you.

"Good," you said, walking towards the doors that led to the Entrance Hall.

He caught suddenly caught your arm. "Maryx...I'm sorry for yelling at you," he apologized, "and for slapping you...and for calling you a bitch...and for asking you all those questions...basically, for being a jerk. I don't know what came over me."

You sighed a little and smile up at him. "That's okay, Riku. I'm the one that started the whole thing anyway. I'm sorry for yelling at you and calling you an asshole."

He grinned and you both went back into the Entrance Hall, the silence between you two no longer awkward. In the Entrance Hall, a man with light brown hair that reached down to his shoulders was with Belle. "Are they gone?" Belle asked anxiously.

"Yup," Riku said. "There was a man in a black coat there too. We got rid of him.

"Oh, you mean one of those Organization XIII people," she said. "Sora once told us about them. By the way, I'm Belle. And this is Adam," she added, putting her arm around the man's waist.

"Hi," Adam said. "Sora probably knows me as Beast."

"Wait, your Beast?" Riku asked, looking surprised.

"He was," Belle said, "but he loved me and I loved him back before the last petal of his enchanted rose fell, so the curse was broken."

You smiled a little. "That's so sweet! Let me guess...you two are married now?"

"Yes, yes we are," Adam said, wrapping his arm around Belle's shoulders.

"I bags telling Sora after we leave," you said automatically to Riku.

"Ah, damn," Riku said, looking disappointed.

"Sora's been getting worked up because most of his friends from other worlds have been getting married," you explained to the couple, who laughed. "That sounds like Sora," Belle commented.

"Speaking of Sora," Adam said, looking around, "where is that kid? Is he alright? Has something happened to him?"

"He and our other friend, Kairi, have got the flu or a cold or something," Riku told them. "They're back on the Gummi Ship with King Mickey."

"Oh, that's terrible!" Belle exclaimed, gasping. "You two must stay here until they're better. You can't get sick too!"

"That's okay," you both said hastily.

"Belle's right," Adam said. "You should stay here, even if it's just for a few days, until there's no risk of you getting ill."

Riku glance at you and you shrugged. "If you say so," he said, smiling. "But is there room?"

"Of course there's room!" Belle said. "But there's only one room you can use, since we're redecorating all the other ones. It has two beds though!"

_ 'Thank gosh,'_ you thought.

"I better go tell Mickey," Riku said, and ran out.

"It's so nice of you to let us stay here," you said sweetly. "If there's any way we can repay you..."

"Don't even think about it!" Belle replied at once. "You got rid of those nobodies, they've been in there for days! It's the least we can do."

"Well, if we see any more of them just tell us; we'll definitely take care of them for you," you promised.

"That's nice of you!" she exclaimed, smiling.

"You two can stay here as long as you need," Adam added cheerfully. "And we'd be glad to give you anything that Sora and Kairi might need."

"Wow, thanks!" you said happily, plastering a grin on your face that actually looked genuine. _'Get your ass back here, Riku,'_ you were thinking at the same time. You kept chatting with Belle and Adam, and about ten minutes later Riku came back with two duffel bags to find you all smiling and laughing.

"Riku, I had no idea a girl fighter could be so strong _and_ so sweet!" Belle said.

Riku stared at you. "So _sweet_?" he repeated incredulously. "Like, no sarcasm or eye rolling or..."

"Um...no?" Belle said looked confused.

A tall wiry man with ginger hair and a wide grin appeared. "This is Lumiere," Adam said, ending the embarrassing conversation. "He'll show you to your rooms."

"This way, this way!" Lumiere said cheerfully. He led you and Riku up a long staircase and into the West Wing, then finally opened a door. "Here you go!" he said, flicking on a light switch. Light flooded into the large room to show two single beds, a wide dresser, a table, and chairs. "This room is so _bare_," Lumiere said in annoyance.

"It's fine, really," you assured him as you and Riku walked in.

"If you need anything, just call for me or Mrs. Potts," he said.

"Will do," Riku said.

As soon as the man left Riku burst out laughing. "Yes, Riku, bedrooms are known to be hysterically funny," you said drily, pulling back a curtain to look out a huge window. You heard thunder booming and saw lightning flashing in the sky, so you hastily put back the curtain. _'Whatever you do, do NOT let him know that your only fear is of thunder,'_ you mentally noted.

Riku leaned against a wall on one arm. "'So sweet'?" he repeated. "They must be blind and deaf!"

"Shut up," you groaned. "I can be nice when I want to." You looked at the two bags that he was still holding. "What's in those?"

He calmed down a little. "Just clothes and our iPods and stuff," he replied, throwing one at you, which you caught easily.

"Huh," you muttered, surprised that he had thought of that. "Thanks." He shrugged and started putting some clothes into one side of the dresser. You both unpacked in silence. After a while the King appeared in your room, holding something that looked large and heavy behind his back. "Hi Your Majesty!" you greeted. "What's wrong?"

"Nothin's wrong," he said with a smile. "Riku, I have something to show ya!."

Riku shrugged. "What is it?"

"Come with me," was all he said, starting to back out of the room.

You narrowed your eyes a little. "What's behind your back?"

"Nothin', nothin'," the King said hastily. '_Too hastily.'_ "Come on, Riku!"

Riku shrugged again and left with him, shutting the door. You stared at the door for a few minutes wondering what could be going on, before shaking your head and putting away the last of your things.

Riku's POV

"Seriously, Mickey, what's behind your back?" you asked for the third time as you opened the door to a dark room. The King backed in, then sighed with relief as he set something on a table with a soft thud. "No, don't turn on the lights," he said as you felt around for the light switch. "It will be harder to see."

"See what?" you said. Your eyes quickly adjusted to the dark and you saw that there was nothing in the room except a small, round wooden table, two chairs, and a crystal ball on the table. "Is that a _crystal ball_?" you asked.

"Yes, it is!" he confirmed. He sat down, and as he waved his hands over the ball and a swirling mist formed inside it.

You made a face. "You're not showing me how I look twenty years from now, are you?"

The King sighed. "_No_, Riku," he said.

You pulled the second chair closer to him and stared at the crystal ball. "What's it for then?" you said suspiciously.

The King looked up at you. "I'm goin' to show ya Maryx's past," he said seriously.

**A/N: CLIFFHANGER! ish...haha. And WOW, only one scene change during the whole chapter! Anyway, peace out xD**


	11. I Still Do

**Recap:**

**Riku's POV**

You made a face. "You're not showing me how I look twenty years from now, are you?"

The King sighed. "_No_, Riku," he said.

You pulled the second chair closer to him and stared at the crystal ball. "What's it for then?" you said suspiciously.

The King looked up at you. "I'm goin' to show ya Maryx's past," he said seriously.

**STORY STARTS**

**(Still Riku's POV)**

"Wait, what?" you said, stunned. "You can show me Maryx's _past_?"

"Yup!" the King replied. "I know that it's a private thing, and that she wouldn't like it, but I think it would clear up a lot!"

You hesitated a little. "I don't know..."

"I saw it already," he told you, "and I felt guilty at first. But, when I saw the whole thing, I felt pretty relieved! Because I knew why Maryx is so...the way she is."

'_Maryx is going to kill me...but she'll never find out...right?' _"Well...alright," you gave in.

The King waved his hands over the crystal ball again and the fog in it cleared. "Whoa." You saw Maryx at around thirteen in hand-to-hand combat with a blonde girl at about the same age, in a big room. They were moving incredibly fast, but you had seen Maryx fight enough times to be able to vaguely follow them. "Can you see them?" the King asked you, and you nodded.

Suddenly Maryx managed kicked the blonde girl in the stomach, and the girl flew across the room and slammed into a wall. Maryx stayed where she was, waiting for the girl to get up. When the girl had joined her again, a tall, fit man with dark black hair came to their side. "Good job, girls," he said. "Paige, you could've blocked that kick. You were focusing too much on blocking Maryx's punches. Maryx, you had plenty of opportunities to hit Paige. Do it sooner next time." He glanced at his watch quickly. "You both still have half an hour left. Spar until the bell rings or until you collapse."

When he left the blonde girl, apparently Paige, groaned. "We've been training for the last four hours and he wants us to spar even more?" she complained.

Maryx shook her head and grinned. "Another half hour won't kill you, Paige," she laughed.

"I think it will," she moaned. Maryx laughed again and they both started to spar once more.

The image started to fade. "What's happening?" you asked anxiously.

"It's just skipping the next half hour or so," the King informed you.

Maryx and Paige appeared again, thought this time they were walking down a street lined with trees and houses. "Can't. Walk," Paige said as she stepped forward haltingly. "Too. Sore. To. Move."

Maryx shoved her playfully. "You weakling! It wasn't that bad!"

"Not that bad? Are you nuts?" Paige asked. "That was the hardest training session ever!"

"Well, I go for private training on Fridays," Maryx said, "and believe me, those are _way_ harder."

"Poor you," she said sympathetically. "By the way, I won the competitions yesterday!"

Maryx screamed. "I told you that you would!" she shrieked, hugging her. "What happened to 'I'm so nervous I want to go home and quit'?"

"I just thought of what you would say," Paige said.

"Which is...?"

"'If you muck up royally, don't let people know I'm your best friend or I'll break your face'," she quoted, and they cracked up laughing. "So what are you doing now?"

"Um..." Maryx looked at her watch. "Four thirty...I have to pick up Ryu from his friend's house and Kaori from the library. I can't go out later either, I have to watch them because Miki and Ron are going out. Wanna come with me?"

"Nah, I have homework. See you later, Maryx!" The image started to fade again as Maryx and Paige parted at an intersection. "Wow," you said, surprised. "She seems so...nice. And normal. Who're Miki and Ron?"

"Her foster parents," the King explained. "Her parents died in a fire two years before, and so did her older brother."

"The one that taught her the guitar," you murmured. "She never even mentioned that she was an orphan."

"I was surprised too!" Mickey replied. "Apparently she supported herself and the other two until Child Services took them into foster care.

"That must've been hard for - wait, what other two?"

Soon you saw Maryx knocking on the door of a beautiful house. A slim woman with long blonde hair answered the door. "Hi Karen!" Maryx said cheerfully.

"Hello Maryx!" the woman greeted warmly. "How's the training?"

Maryx groaned good-naturedly. "Painful," she replied with a smile.

The woman laughed. "I'll go fetch Ryu for you." She didn't even finish her sentence when an eight year-old boy ran out. "MARYX!" he yelled gleefully, full-on glomping her. He had dark brown hair and strange eyes, one dark blue and one purple.

"Hey Ryu!" Maryx said, hugging him back. Another boy came and stood by the blonde woman. "Sorry to leave so soon, but I have to pick up my sister," Maryx said to her.

You stared at the crystal ball in amazement. "Kaori and Ryu are her brother and sister?"

The King sighed sadly. "Were. They _were _her brother and sister..."

"Not a problem," the woman said. "Don't overdo the training!"

"Bye Ryu!" the other kid said.

The two left and started walking down the sidewalk again. Ryu was holding Maryx's hand and half-walking, half-bouncing. "So, did you have fun Ryu?" Maryx asked him.

"Yeah!" Ryu yelled. "Kyle had new G. I. Joes!"

"Awesome!" she exclaimed. Ryu started chattering about Kyle's new G. I. Joes and Maryx nodded enthusiastically, adding a few praises every now and then. In a while they were outside a library and a shy-looking, twelve year old girl with brown eyes identical to Maryx's, brown hair tied back in low pigtails, and holding books and a sketchpad walked up to them. "Hi Ryx!" she said quietly.

"KAORI!" Ryu yelled. Maryx held him back before he could jump on her. "Not while she's holding books, little bro," she said, messing up his hair. "Here, I'll take some of those," she added, taking some books off Kaori. "So where do you guys want to go now?"

"I need to put my stuff away," Kaori said, "but then let's go to the forest."

"YEAH!" Ryu cheered. "I can throw rocks at you, Ryx!" They started fading again.

"Did he just say 'I can throw rocks at you'?" you asked.

"Yup!" the King said.

"And they called her Ryx!"

Mickey smiled. "She only let those two call her that. Okay, this part is from the next day."

They appeared again, and this time they were in some sort of forest. Maryx was wearing a loose navy T-shirt, jeans, and strappy purple sandals, and was sitting with her back against a tree. Kaori was sitting next to her holding her sketchpad, and Ryu was standing on a rock in a superhero pose. "Kaori, can I get _down_ now?" he asked.

"Just a little more..." Kaori muttered, drawing furiously. "There! Done, Ryu."

He hopped off the rock to look at the drawing. "Cool, I have a cape!" he exclaimed. "_Now _can I throw rocks at you, Ryx? Pleeeease?"

Maryx sighed. "Okay, Ryu," she said, rolling her eyes good-naturedly at Kaori and getting up.

"Yes!" Ryu grinned, and started making an enormous pile of rocks. "Ready?" She nodded. He started flinging the rocks at her as fast as he could, and she dodged them easily. You noticed how she was purposely moving slowly, and then intentionally didn't dodge at one point, so a rock hit her on the arm. Immediately Ryu stopped, his eyes wide. "I...I got you!" he said, stunned.

Maryx rubbed her arm. "Either I'm getting slower, or you're getting quicker, Ryu!"

"Hey Maryx, did you put that camera on timer and take a picture of us while I was drawing?" Kaori asked suddenly.

"Um...maybe?"

"Ryx!" Kaori wailed. "Did you have to? I hate being in pictures!"

"Don't worry, it was only one picture," Maryx said, picking up the camera. "Besides, I promise I won't show it to anyone other than close friends or something, okay? Come on, we have to get back."

Once again, they started disappearing. "Can you show me the part where things change for her now?" you asked impatiently.

"Alright," the King said, waving his hands as they showed up again. "This is one week later."

They showed up in the same forest, although this time Kaori was reading, Maryx was doing push-ups, and Ryu was sitting on Maryx and counting aloud. "Nine hundred and ninety-eight," he chanted, "nine hundred and ninety-nine, one thousand!" Maryx's arms gave away and she collapsed at one thousand. "Let's do another thousand!" said Ryu, bouncing up and down.

"No!" Maryx said hastily, getting up. "No...three thousand push-ups is enough for one day, Ryu."

Kaori stood up slowly, her eyes wide and fear-filled. "Kaori, what's wrong?" Maryx asked, moving towards her.

Kaori pointed shakily at something behind Ryu, and Maryx spun around to see someone appearing out of a portal.

"Ansem...Xehanort's Heartless?" you asked in surprise.

"Who the hell are you?" Maryx demanded. _'That's more like the Maryx I know,'_ you thought.

Xehanort's Heartless just smirked, grabbed Ryu, and started to strangle him. "Let go of my brother!" she yelled. She tried to attack him, but he simply disappeared and reappeared behind her. Within a few seconds Ryu went slack in his hands and he let him slump to the ground, then he grabbed Kaori, who screamed.

"Don't even try to attack me," he warned Maryx, "or she'll die too..."

Maryx was just standing there, looking back and forth between her terrified sister to her dead brother to Xehanort's Heartless in anger. "You...you bastard!" she hissed, tears filling her eyes.

"Save it," he said. "I am Ansem, the Seeker of Darkness." He held on to Kaori with one arm and with the other made a portal right next to Maryx. "In. Now."

Maryx looked once more at Ryu's body and back at Kaori, then, shaking, stepped into the portal, with Xehanort's Heartless following her. They ended up in a small, empty dark room with stone walls and floors. Xehanort's Heartless suddenly made a second portal. "Kaori!" she screamed, trying to grab Xehanort's Heartless as he vanished with Kaori, leaving her alone in the room. A few seconds later he returned alone. "Where's my sister?" Maryx said frantically.

"She's fine," he said. "As long as you shut your mouth and do what I say, she'll stay that way."

"What kind of a freak are you?" she cried hysterically. "What do you want?"

Xehanort's Heartless laughed. "You're very special," he said vaguely. "You might see your sister again. If you cooperate." He made another portal and moved towards it. "You start training tomorrow," he added.

"Wh-what're you talking about?" Maryx asked.

He ignored her question. "If you thought your 'Friday training sessions' were painful," he continued, "then you don't know the meaning of pain." Before she could say anything he left.

Maryx sank to the floor, and tears began to spill out of her eyes. You were amazed at how vulnerable she looked, compared to now. "Ryu," she whispered.

To your frustration they faded again. "What happened then?" you asked.

"Xehanort's Heartless started working her really hard," the King answered. "And he always reminded her that Kaori was still alive. I won't show ya the trainin' part, since it gets gruesome. This part is two years later. She's fifteen here."

You soon saw Maryx again, slashing away at a huge flock of Heartless. It didn't take her long for her to get rid of them all. When they were all dead, you could see how much thinner she was, and how she looked exhausted, like she had been training for hours nonstop. There was blood seeping through her shirt, and you could see the hard, emotionless look in her face that you were familiar with. She was standing in a big, dark room with a screen nearly covering one wall behind her.

Xehanort's Heartless showed up next to her. "Maryx, you remember that Kaori is fine and she'd stay fine if you'd do what I'd say?" he asked.

"Yeah," she replied flatly. "What about it?"

"Well, she is fine," he said. "She's not hurt, and-"

"Why are you telling me this?" Maryx interrupted impatiently. "I know she's fine. You've reminded me a million times. Do I have to kill more Heartless or something?"

"No," he said, "but you can see her."

Maryx's facial expression instantly changed from cold to hopeful. "I...I can?"

"_If_ you do just one more thing," he added. He grabbed a remote and hit a button, and a pictures of two girls and three boys around Maryx's age showed up on the screen behind them. You recognized one of the girls as Paige . "These were your best friends, weren't they?"

"Yes..." she said slowly.

"Kill them."

"_What?_"

"Kill them."

Maryx scowled. "I've done enough shit for you, Ansem. I'm not going to kill my best friends."

"If you do," Xehanort's Heartless said, "you and Kaori will be free to go."

She hesitated, then shook her head. "I want to see her first."

"You could've asked for that months ago," he said, smirking.

"Just show me," she demanded.

"Hmph. Very well." He waved his hand and a hologram of an older-looking Kaori apparently sleeping appeared. "There, she's fine," Xehanort's Heartless said, making it disappear. "Now hurry up and do it."

Maryx blinked a little. "Why do you want me to kill my best friends anyway?"

He sighed like she were asking him the meaning of life. "Because," he replied, "their hearts are unique. Exactly half darkness and half light. If one of their hearts were added to Kingdom Hearts, it would be like adding a hundred."

"What's that got to do with being half darkness and half light?" Maryx asked.

"It's too complicated for you to understand, girl," he snapped. "Do what you're told."

She gave him one last death glare before making a portal and stepping through it, ending up in some sort of sports field. A little ahead of her were the teenagers that Xehanort's Heartless had shown her.

One of the boys saw Maryx and his eyes widened. "Holy...Maryx?" he stammered. The rest of them turned around to see what he was looking at. "Maryx!" Paige screamed, running up to her. Maryx winced as she hugged her. "Get. Off. Now," she growled.

Paige pulled away and stared at her. The others joined her.

"Where've you _been_?" Paige asked. "It was all over the news and all about how Ryu was killed and you and Kaori disappeared!"

"Maryx, what's wrong?" a boy with dark blonde hair asked. "You look...different."

"Oh my gosh! How deep is that cut?" another girl with red hair added.

Maryx didn't answer any of their questions, and stood there looking annoyed . _'She's angry because she doesn't want to do this and they're making it harder,_' you realised.

"Seriously Ryx, what's wrong?" the blonde boy repeated.

"Don't call me Ryx," she said tonelessly.

"Are you okay?" Paige asked.

She rolled her eyes. "Of course, Paige. I saw my brother being strangled to death and put up with a whole lot of crap just to keep my sister alive, and I'm fine. Just brilliant."

"Maryx..." One of the boys tried to reach out to her, but she whacked his arm away angrily. "Don't touch me," she said dangerously.

"Who did this to you?" the red haired girl demanded. "You're not the same!"

Maryx closed her eyes and summoned her Broken Pieces Keyblade. When she opened her eyes you saw tears. "I'm so sorry, you guys," she said.

"Maryx, what are you..." She cut Paige off by stabbing her straight through the heart. Before her friends could react she had stabbed them all. She made her Keyblade disappear and stared at her friends' bodies lying on the ground as their hearts floated into the air and vanished. Then she dried her eyes furiously, as if she were angry that she had feelings, and travelled through another portal back to the stone room.

"Before ya ask," the King said, like he had read your mind, "she couldn't use a portal to get away from Xehanort's Heartless. He would've been able to find her in a few minutes."

"I was wondering why she didn't do that," you muttered as you watched her approach Xehanort's Heartless.

"Done," she said simply. "Let me go see Kaori in person."

He laughed creepily. "You fool," he smirked. He made the hologram of Kaori appear again. "She's dead."

Maryx stared at the hologram of Kaori 'sleeping'. You couldn't tell whether or not the younger girl was breathing. "What?" she whispered.

"I killed her months ago," he said, laughing again and removing the hologram. "She was too much trouble, always asking questions. Just like you. Although she was much less important, so I got rid of her. And you're not of any more use to me, now that you've collect so many hearts," he added, ignoring the fact that Maryx looked ready to blow up a building. "So I can get rid of you too."

Before Maryx could dodge he punched her so hard that she hit the wall on the other side of the room. Just as she was about to hit the ground he fired dark bonds at her arms and legs. With her pinned to the wall, he started punching her repeatedly.

"Oh my God," you muttered, feeling an urge to look away as she began coughing up blood. It went on for a few minutes, when a bright light flashed. When it cleared, Xehanort's Heartless had vanished, the dark bonds were gone, and King Mickey was standing in his place.

"Is that you?" you asked in surprise, even though it was a stupid question.

Maryx fell to the ground, still coughing up blood. Past-Mickey picked her up so she was leaning on him. "Don't worry, you'll be fine!" he said. Another bright flash, and they were gone.

Present-Mickey waved his hands and the crystal ball became clear again. "There's nothing much after that," he said. "I took her back to the castle, and she stayed with me for a year before I sent her on this mission!"

You were still stunned at what you had seen. "That asshole was more of a jerk than I thought," you said. '_So he took away the last few people in her world that she really cared about, after losing everything else...'_

Mickey opened his mouth to say something, but you both heard a noise in the doorway and turned around to look. You only just managed to see Maryx slipping away. "Oh, no," you muttered, jumping out of your chair and running out the door.

**Your POV (finally)**

"What in the world are they doing?" you murmured after twenty minutes had gone by. Belle had come in a few minutes ago pretty much ordering you to find Riku and to get to sleep. Frustrated, you jumped off your bed and started wandering around the corridors, doing your best to ignore the thunder.

You finally heard voices coming from behind a door. Trying not to make a noise, you carefully pushed it open, and saw Riku and the King sitting at a table with their backs to you, staring transfixed at some sort of crystal ball.

Your eyes widened as you saw yourself at fifteen years old making a portal and talking to your old friends. Fighting the urge to run, you forced yourself to watch fifteen-year-old-you stabbing each one of your friends quickly and talking to Xehanort's Heartless, and getting beaten up soon after.

Soon King Mickey started saying something about there not being much after that, but you weren't paying attention. Memories flashed through your mind as you relived the moments when your parents and your older brother died, Ryu was murdered by that monster, you killed your best friends, and then Kaori was dead too. You ran back to your room and slammed the door behind you, not caring if they had seen you.

You sat down slowly on your bed and reached for your iPod, but Riku burst in before you could grab it. "Maryx, I'm sorry," he started.

"Why were you watching that?" you interrupted him, try to push your memories into the back of your mind. "I thought I told you I didn't want you to know what happened to me!"

"I know, I know," he said. "I wasn't going to, but then the King said that he had already watched it, and I didn't see him training you or anything..."

"You know what?" you interrupted him again. "Just forget it." You grabbed your iPod and sat on the other side of your bed so your were facing away from him.

"Maryx..."

"I said forget it!" you snapped, choosing a song and trying to listen to the music.

A few seconds passed, then Riku sat down next to you. "Maryx."

You ignored him.

"Maryx."

You raised to volume so the music was blasting in your ears.

"Maryx!"

This time he pulled the earphones out and grabbed the iPod away from you. "_What_, Riku?" you said.

"What do you want me to say?" he demanded. "You can't change the past, and you can't change the fact that I saw what happened to you. So just accept it."

You glared at him and tried to snatch your iPod back, but he held it out of reach. "He beat you up pretty badly," he said more gently. "Did he do that a lot?"

"How much did you see?" you asked cautiously.

"I saw Ryu and Kaori and you a week before Xehanort's Heartless came," he said, "then the next week, how he...how he strangled your brother then forced you to go with him by threatening to kill Kaori, and then two years later, where you were killing a whole lot of Heartless, then Xehanort's Heartless told you to kill your best friends, then how he told you that you sister was already dead and he started punching you, and how the King came. That's all, I swear."

"You didn't see the two years in between?"

Riku shook his head, and you sighed. "He'd beat me up like that a lot," you said. "Almost every day. And he'd make me train really hard. Like, nonstop for hours and hours. And a few times he even..."

"Even...?" Riku said, since you looked away and stopped talking.

Just thinking about your sister and brother, and the crap Xehanort's Heartless did to you, made your tears well up in your eyes. _'Damn it, I managed not to cry for years, and I'm crying now?_' you thought.

"Maryx?" Riku touched your shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"He raped me," you whispered. "That bastard...he raped me for no reason." You finally broke down and started crying. "I don't even know what he did to my sister," you said shakily. "For all I know he could've beaten her up or starved her or raped her, and I don't even know!"

You felt him put his arm around you and pull you closer to him. "It's okay, Maryx," he murmured.

"No it's not! She's dead!" you said, still crying. "They're all dead, and it's my fault! I should've done something, but I didn't even try!"

"There was nothing you could do," Riku said softly, stroking your hair. "You couldn't have stopped Xehanort's Heartless from killing them, you couldn't have stopped the fire, and Xehanort's Heartless would've killed your friends in the end anyway. There was nothing you could do. It's not your fault."

You buried your head in his chest as all the tears you had held back for years came pouring out. "It's okay," he repeated, holding you tighter.

After a few minutes you took a deep breath and lifted your head. "They...they said she was alive."

"Who?" Riku asked.

"X-Xigbar," you said, drying your eyes. "And Vexen, in Olympus Coliseum. They said she was alive."

"She could be," he said, wiping a stray tear away. "It was hard to make out if she was sleeping or dead, anyway. Maybe she was unconscious."

"Maybe..." You laid your head on his chest again, feeling calmer as you listened to his steady heartbeat, and he rested his head on yours. The two of you stayed like that for a few minutes.

"Hey, Riku? Can I ask you something?" you asked suddenly as you remembered something.

"Yeah?"

"I think...when I first met you guys, and we were going to Hollow Bastion," you said uncomfortably, moving your head to look up at him. "I overheard you telling Sora...that you liked me? Is that true?"

Riku smiled a little. "It's true," he said. "And I still do."

"You do?" you said in surprise.

He nodded. He nearly said something else, but at that moment the thunder boomed extra-loudly, and you nearly jumped off the bed in alarm. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"Um..." you started blushing like mad. "I'm afraid of thunder."

He smirked a little. "_Thunder_? Seriously?"

"It's not that funny!" you snapped.

"Calm down," Riku laughed, brushing your hair out of your face and smiling. "You're so cute when you're mad," he added. You started blushing again, and before you could reply he leaned down a little and kissed you.

You were too shocked to kiss back, and he pulled away almost instantly. "Sorry," he muttered, looking away. "I shouldn't have done that."

"It's okay," you said hastily.

"No, it's not," he said.

"Yes it is," you insisted. When he looked at you again you kissed him, catching him by surprise. Before long he started kissing you back, pulling you even closer to him. He licked your bottom lip, begging for access, which you gave him gladly. Soon he leaned in further, pinning you down on your bed. His hands slid up your top and you ran your hands through his hair. When he started kissing your neck, you moaned softly as he almost instantly hit yout weak spot. You broke off a few minutes later when you heard the door opening.

"Maryx, are ya in here?" the King asked, walking in without knocking. Riku leapt off you and you both tried to look as innocent as possible, and failing. "What were you two doing?" the King asked, then he looked confused. "Maryx, is that a hickey?"

"Um...no?" you said hopefully, rubbing your neck.

"Were you two makin' out?" he asked incredulously.

"Heh...yes," Riku replied, sitting down on the bed again. The King looked at you as if to see if this were true. "Yes," you said.

He looked completely baffled. "You two were makin' out?" he repeated. "You...and him?"

Riku sighed a little. "Yes, Mickey."

"I knew this would happen," he said, looking slightly smug. "Well, I thought I'd see if Maryx had murdered ya or not, Riku, but obviously you're gettin' along just fine."

"Your Majesty!" you said, embarrassed.

"You better get some sleep!" the King said, suddenly cheerful. "'Night, you two!"

"'Night," you and Riku said. Almost as soon as he left, you let out a huge yawn. "He's right, it's getting late," Riku said.

You grabbed his arm as he stood up. "Stay with me?" you begged when he looked at you questioningly. He nodded, and you both climbed under the sheets.

The thunder outside rumbled even louder. "Still afraid of the thunder?" he whispered, holding you close.

"What thunder?" you murmured.

He chuckled and stroked your hair. "We'll find her," he said, referring to Kaori.

"If she's alive," you responded.

"She is," he said confidently. He kissed the top of your head. "Go to sleep, Maryx."

You snuggled closer to him and almost instantly fell asleep.

**AN: Happy now, people? (riku fangirls whose usernames I have lost *sorry!*: Yes! Thank you!) me: You're welcome xD**


	12. Bonding Time

**RECAP:**

"He's right, it's getting late," Riku said.

You grabbed his arm as he stood up. "Stay with me?" you begged when he looked at you questioningly. He nodded, and you both climbed under the sheets.

The thunder outside rumbled even louder. "Still afraid of the thunder?" he whispered, holding you close.

"What thunder?" you murmured.

He chuckled and stroked your hair. "We'll find her," he said, referring to Kaori.

"If she's alive," you responded.

"She is," he said confidently. He kissed the top of your head. "Go to sleep Maryx."

You snuggled closer to him and almost instantly fell asleep.

**STORY STARTS:**

You woke up in Riku's arms, feeling safe for the first time in a long while. Snuggling closer to him, you wished that you never had to move.

Next to you, Riku shifted and his eyes began to open. You smiled and kissed him before he could wake up fully. Pretty soon he started kissing back. "I could get used to this," he commented, pulling away finally and opening his eyes.

You smiled as he pulled you closer to him. "You know, at first I thought I had dreamed the whole thing," he murmured.

"So did I," you laughed, turning your head to look at him. _'God, his eyes are so green,_' you thought.

He kissed you on the forehead. "Come on, we gotta get up."

"Do we _have_ to?" you complained softly.

He laughed, shoving the covers off and laughing again when you groaned and sat up groggily. "You look exactly like Sora does when someone wakes him up," he said.

"I'm awake," you said, getting up hastily.

* * *

Belle walked some time later while you were brushing your hair. "Good! You're awake!" she exclaimed.

_'Obviously,'_ you thought.

"There's another Organization XIII member outside," she said. "I've seen him before, his name's Xaldin."

Riku already has his Keyblade out. "Let's go!" he said to you, running out the door.

"Be careful!" Belle called as you followed him.

By the time you reached the end of the hall you managed to catch up with Riku and grabbed his arm, and you transported the two of you to the doors of the Entrance Hall.

Outside, it was still raining, and lightning and thunder crashed across the sky. A man with dreadlocks and wearing the Organization cloak stood waiting for you in the rain. In his hand he was holding a key.

"How'd he get the wind key?" Riku muttered.

"Maryx, Riku, you're finally here," Xaldin said calmly. "And before you ask, Kaori told me all about you."

Riku glanced at you and saw the annoyed look on your face. "Where did you get the key from?" he demanded.

"It is none of your concern," he replied. "Where is the boy with the key?"

"Who, Sora?" you asked. "He's not here."

Xaldin shook his head. "A pity," he said. "He was much easier to deal with. You two…I can feel your power. You are stronger." Without warning the wind began to blow harder and he summoned his weapons, making them circle around you. "But not strong enough."

For a long time you and Riku fought Xaldin, but even with him holding the wind key in one hand, he was clearly winning. Occasionally he moved away from where you were and hovered in the air, blasting attacks at the two of you from afar. You were starting to get annoyed at how you were actually struggling to avoid his lances as they flew around with deadly aim.

While Xaldin was moving away again, you and Riku stopped fighting. "You can fly for short times, right?"

"Yeah," you said.

"Fly over to him and get the key off him," Riku said, "then kick him hard enough to make him fall back here. Think you can do that?"

You made you Keyblade disappear. "Easy."

You flew quickly behind Xaldin, and before he saw you, you punched him in the back, making him lose his grip on the key. Catching it before it fell, you then kicked him hard enough to send him flying back to the ground. Before he could react you landed and started attacking him from all sides with Riku.

Soon he collapsed and started fading. "Kaori said you were strong," he said, chuckling. You tried to say something, but he raised a hand and fired a silver beam at your arm, slicing it in the same place that Vexen had cut you, only much deeper. "She was right," he added. Riku wordlessly shot Xaldin with his Keyblade as he disappeared completely.

"Are you okay?" he asked straight away, taking hold of your arm.

"It'll be fine," you said. "I just need a potion, but I used up all of mine."

"I don't have any left too. The moogles will have some though."

You bit your lip hard as the rain fell on the gash. "Does it ever stop raining here?" you asked, glaring at the clouds looming in the sky and clutching your arm.

Riku laughed and kissed you softly. "Come on, we're just getting wet out here," he said. "You got the key?" You nodded and headed back to the castle with him, slightly started at the fact that your arm suddenly felt a little better.

Once you had bought a potion in the parlour and you looked at the key closely. "This is the one," you said confidently.

"Why wouldn't it be?" Riku asked, grinning.

"I dunno, I was just checking," you said. Belle came in as Riku was shaking his head. "He's gone?" she asked. "Great! Are you two alright?"

"We're fine," he said.

"So that's the key you were telling us about last night, Maryx?" she asked, looking down at your hand.

"Yup!" you replied. "He just dropped it into my hand."

Belle looked confused as Riku started laughing. "Now that he's gone," she said, still sounding puzzled, "why don't you two go check on Sora and Kairi?"

You and Riku glanced at each other, and he shrugged. "I guess so," he said.

"Remember, you're welcome to stay here as long as you need," she reminded you.

"Thanks Belle," you said, as she left.

"So you wanna go see them?" Riku asked.

"Sure, I guess," you shrugged, and grabbed his arm.

He looked around in surprise when he saw that you had transported him outside to the door of the Gummi Ship. "Hey wait," he said, stopping you before you went in. "Let's not tell them about…you know, what happened last night."

"Why not?"

"Because it would be hilarious to see their reaction if we come back after a few days and they walk in on us making out or something," he said.

A wicked grin came over your face. "Let's pretend that we still hate each other," you said, "but more than before, because we were stuck with each other for a night and you were acting like an jerk."

"Great idea – hey, why do I have to be acting like an jerk?" he said, pinning you against the door.

"You don't have to say that if you don't want to," you replied, your heart racing as he pressed himself against you.

"So I can say you were being a stuck-up bitch?" he asked as he moved his head closer.

"Sure," you murmured, closing your eyes and kissing him. He started moving his hands up your waist, but without warning the door opened behind you, and he only just caught you before you fell backwards.

"What are ya two doin' out in the rain, do ya wanna get sick as well…" the King said, trailing off when he saw Riku holding you. "Riku, you gotta at least _try _and keep your hands off of her for five minutes!" he exclaimed.

"Your Majesty!" you said, blushing again.

Riku put a finger to his lips. "Try and keep it down," he said to King Mickey. "We want to make Sora and Kairi think that we still hate each other."

The King looked baffled. "What's the point in that?" he asked, but he was smiling.

"Can't we have any fun?" you pouted.

"By the way, we found the wind key," Riku added, taking it out of a pocket.

His smile widened. "Well done!" he said as he took it of Riku. "I'll put it with the rest, you two go see Sora and Kairi. And no doing it in the hallway!"

"We're not going to have sex in a hallway!" you exclaimed.

"He's just joking," Riku said as he steered you away from King Mickey, who was chuckling "You go see Kairi, I'll go see Sora. Remember, act like you think I'm a jerk."

"Like how I acted most of the time?" you asked, smirking.

He laughed, "Exactly.

"Too easy," you said, as he walked away from you and slammed the door as he went into Sora's room. You went into your room and slammed the door behind you as well.

Kairi looked up from a book she was reading. "Hey, what're you doing here?" she asked happily.

"Planting a bomb in Riku's bed," you said sarcastically, flopping down on the bed next to her. "What does it look like?"

"Okay, what's wrong?" She put her book down and looked at you worriedly.

You sighed in 'frustration' and rested your head against the wall. "Riku's such a dick!" you said hotly.

Kairi blinked a little. "O…kay…why exactly?"

"Last night," you said, "he kept trying to piss me off and was just a jerk half the time. Belle only had one spare room and it has two beds, so she put us in there. And. He. Was. SO. Annoying."

"Is that all?" she said, laughing.

"_Is that all_?" you repeated. "Did you not hear me? Half the time he was a jerk, and otherwise he'd ignore me! I didn't even _do_ anything." Kairi gave you a look. "I didn't!" you protested.

You shook your head violently and ran your hands through your hair, sighing. "Never mind," you said, "I don't want to think about him . I have to put up with him for three more days or so anyway."

"That's true," Kairi admitted. "If he's being annoying, just don't pay attention to him; he'll stop soon enough."

"I'll try," you said, fighting an urge to laugh. " So, are you feeling better?"

"Actually, I feel a lot better," she said. "Maybe you'll only have to put up with Riku for one or two more nights."

"Hallelujah," you groaned. "Take as long as you need Kairi, I'll probably survive. Not."

**Riku's POV**

"Whoa, what's the matter?" Sora asked as you slammed the door.

"If I have to put up with that stuck-up bitch any longer," you said, "I will strangle anything that looks me in the eye."

He sat up a little straighter. "Calm down," he said, "what did she do?"

"Last night," you said, "Belle only had one room, and it has two beds, so she put us both in there. And whenever I opened my mouth Maryx would say something sarcastic or just told me to shut up. You know, I asked her if I could borrow a pencil or a pen…or something, I don't remember, and she told me to go throw myself off some mountain!"

"Did she say to go fling yourself off of Mount Everest and let the vultures eat your body until noting was left but a rotting carcass?" he asked.

You smothered a laugh. "Yes, that is exactly what she said, Sora. How'd you know?"

"Ah." Sora nodded like he was a wise man. "She said that to me once. The King told me that Mount Everest is the tallest mountain in her world or something."

You groaned. "See what I mean? She kept getting pissed off at everything I said. When I said good night, she said 'go to hell'. What was the point of that?"

"Just ignore her," he said. "If she has no one to talk to, then she'll stop acting that way."

Tilting your head back, you pretended that you were thinking about this. "You know what, Sora? That's actually not a bad idea. Coming from you, anyway."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Sora yelped, hitting you on the arm as you started laughing.

**Your POV**

You spent the rest of the morning talking to Kairi, since her throat was still sore. At around one, Riku walked in without knocking.

"There's a little something called knocking," you said, turning away from Kairi so only he could see you smiling. "It's only a matter of tapping on the wooden plank we call a door before you walk into a room."

"Would you shut up for one minute?" he asked. "I just want to talk to Kairi."

You glanced back at Kairi and rolled your eyes. "See what I mean?" you commented, before leaving.

In the lounge-thing the King was staring at a World Map. He looked up as you came in. "Where's Riku?" he asked.

"Talking to Kairi," you said, sitting down on one of the seats. "So how long do we have to stay here, Your Majesty?"

"They're gettin' better pretty quickly," he told you. "You fellas can leave tomorrow night."

"You can't come with us?" you asked.

"I'll meet up with you later," he promised as Riku came in. "After you get the last keys."

"There are two more keys, right?" Riku said.

"No, idiot," you said, rolling your eyes, "it's three."

"It's two."

"Three."

"Two!"

"Three!

The King interrupted. "There's two left. One in Port Royal and one in Pride Lands."

Riku smirked at you. "See?"

You stuck your tongue out at him and got up. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Getting the guitar," you said. "Kairi wanted me to play something." You wandered into the hallway and got out the black guitar. Kairi looked up as you went into her room again.

"What're you playing?" she asked eagerly.

"Another song from my world," you told her. "It's called 'Sparks Fly'."

Craning her neck, Kairi suddenly grinned. "Hey Riku!" she said cheerfully. You turned around to see him leaning in the doorway. "What now?" you asked, pretending to be irritated.

"I want to hear too," he said casually. "Is that a crime?"

You rolled your eyes again and faced Kairi again. "Come _on_, Maryx!" Kairi said, poking your arm.

"Alright, alright!" you exclaimed. "Calm down." You tuned the guitar a little then began to play.

_The way you move is like a full on rainstorm__  
__And I'm a house of cards__  
__You're the kind of reckless__  
__That should send me runnin'__  
__But I kinda know that I won't get far_

_And you stood there in front of me__  
__Just close enough to touch__  
__Close enough to hope you couldn't see__  
__What I was thinking of_

_Drop everything now__  
__Meet me in the pouring rain__  
__Kiss me on the sidewalk__  
__Take away the pain__  
__'cause I see sparks fly whenever you smile__  
__Get me with those green eyes, baby, as the lights go down__  
__Give me something that'll haunt me when you're not around__  
__'cause I see sparks fly whenever you smile__My mind forgets to remind me__  
__You're a bad idea__  
__You touch me once and it's really something,__  
__You find I'm even better than you imagined I would be._

_I'm on my guard for the rest of the world__  
__But with you I know it's no good__  
__And I could wait patiently but I really wish you would__Drop everything now__  
__Meet me in the pouring rain..._

**(Sparks Fly - Taylor Swift)**_  
_

You found yourself thinking of Riku as you sang the full song. _'Kinda weird how the lyrics sort of relate to him and me,'_ you thought. Kairi clapped loudly when you finished. "Do another one!" she insisted.

"Sorry," you said, getting up and stretching. "Only one song per hour. Unless you have twenty munny?"

"You're sad," she pouted.

Riku laughed from where he was standing. "Come on, we better go," he said. "See ya, Kairi."

"Bye Riku, bye Maryx!" she said as he left.

"Hurry up and get better," you said, making a face. "If I have to put up with him for two more days on my own I'll jump off a cliff."

Kairi shook her head and grinned. "You'll be fine," she said.

"Bye, you two," the King said once you had put away the guitar and you and Riku were leaving.

* * *

"Good song," Riku said back in your room. "Was that somehow aimed at me?"

"Maybe," you said vaguely, smiling at him and sitting down on your bed. He came and sat next to you.

"What was your world like, anyway?" he asked. "I mean, like how me and Sora you about our world, what was yours like? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," he added hastily.

"It's okay," you said. "In size I guess you could say it's like all of these worlds that you guys go to put together, times three thousand. And that's just the land, water covers most of the surface."

Riku looked a bit surprised. "Three thousand? If it's so big, how come it's not on the map?"

"I dunno," you shrugged slightly. "I tried to find out where it could be when I stayed with the King, but I couldn't find it anywhere."

"So which world was it most like?"

"Umm…" trailing off, you thought about it for a moment. "It was like all these worlds, really. I mean, Agrabah was most like this land called Saudi Arabia, Land of the Dragons was most like China, there were loads of little cities kinda like Radiant Garden and Twilight Town. And there were hundreds of islands like yours. Actually, there are still some that haven't been discovered yet. I guess the only worlds that aren't similar to mine are Atlantica and The World That Never Was."

You told him more about your world, and he told you more about the Destiny Islands. Then he started talking about the whole deal with him and Xehanort's Heartless, and you told him more about the way he had treated you. Pretty soon you realized that it was nighttime. "When did that happen?" you wondered aloud.

"When did what happen?" He glanced at his watch and laughed. "So we _can_ actually have a long conversation without killing each other. It's eleven o'clock."

"What – we sat around talking for eight hours?" you asked incredulously.

"Apparently," he said. "I didn't know you could talk so much."

You pouted and whacked him on the arm. "Was that an insult?" you asked.

"No!" he laughed. "It's just that I'm used to you being really quiet."

Just then Belle walked in and stared down both of you with her hands on her hips. "Do you two know what time it is?" she demanded.

"It's eleven, Belle," you said. "It's not that late."

"Well, you haven't even eaten anything since you came back," she said. "Are you going to go to bed on an empty stomach?"

"Yes," Riku said seriously.

Belle shook her head and sighed. "I'm not even going to try," she said with a smile, turning to leave. "Good night, you two."

"'Night," you called as she shut the door. Without thinking you suddenly yawned. "So, it's not that late?" Riku repeated, smirking.

"Oh, don't you start." You got up and grabbed your PJ's. "I'm going to bed," you said, leaving to go to the bathroom the change.

"The beds are in here, you know," he called after you.

"I _know_, I'm going to the bathroom," you yelled back.

When you got back Riku had changed too and was lying in your bed. "Riku, you could at least ask," you said, grinning.

"What, you don't want me here?" he asked, but he was grinning too.

You got into the bed and he put his arms around you. "Of course I do," you said, tilting your head up. "But no kissing."

"Why?" You almost laughed at the childish look on Riku's face. "Because, every time we try to make out, somebody walks in on us," you said.

He laughed and held you closer. "Life's annoying that way," he murmured, kissing the top of your head. "Good night, Maryx." Almost immediately you felt your eyelids getting heavy and you fell asleep.

* * *

**Riku's POV**

You were woken up by strange noises. Looking down at Maryx, you saw something shining on her face. Tears?

She twisted about in her sleep, mumbling pleas and scared words under her breath. "Don't...please don't...no...please...stop," she kept saying. You felt a hot anger swelling up inside you that quickly faded away into sadness. _'She's dreaming about Xehanort's Heartless. He really has scarred her...if only he were still alive...I'd kill him again, but I'd make it so much more painful and slow for him...give him a shadow of the pain he's given Maryx.'_

You shook Maryx softly, not wanting her to suffering from any more of the memories.

**Your POV**

"Maryx! Maryx, wake up!"

Someone was shaking you awake. The frantic voice rang in your ears, drawing you out of your nightmare. Your eyes flew open, and you were vaguely aware that you were crying. The first thing you saw was a flash of silver. Instinctively, you shifted away as far as you could.

The silver came closer, and you flinched, bracing yourself for a violating hand or a stinging blow. You heard the person withdraw, obviously seeing your fear. "Maryx, it's just me," he said. Trembling, you raised you head and locked your gaze with a pair of concerned aqua eyes.

Riku. It wasn't Xehanort's Heartless; it was Riku. '_How could I think he'd hurt me?'_ you thought, brushing away some of your tears.

"It was just a dream, Maryx," he said softly, reaching out his hand. "He's not here. He can't hurt you anymore."

You nodded shakily and moved closer to him, letting him wrap his arms around you. "Count my heartbeat," he said quietly.

Gradually, as you counted the comforting thumps, you felt your body stop shivering and your own heart slow down. Riku rubbed your back in soothing circles, gently rocking you back and forth. "Thank you, Riku," you whispered, tilting your head up and kissing his cheek.

He smiled and dried your face with his hands, then kissed your forehead. "Better now?" he asked, and you nodded. Then you smiled slightly. "Sorry..."

"What for?" he said in surprise.

You laughed a little and touched his shirt, damp from your crying. "I got your shirt wet."

He smiled too, pulling the shirt over his head and tossing it to the side. "It's just a shirt," he said, lying back down. He pulled to towards him and you soon fell asleep in his arms once again.

* * *

The next day was basically the same. You and Riku went to see Sora and Kairi again, keeping up the act that you hated each other. You talked even longer with him, and trained for a few hours in the ballroom. You also made out a few times, for once uninterrupted! That night, you were saying goodbye to Belle.

"Thanks so much for letting us stay here, Belle," you said, putting on a sweet smile. _ 'Get this over with, get this over with,'_ you repeated in your head.

Belle hugged you unexpectedly. "Don't thank me!" she said. "I still owe you both and Sora for what you three have done."

"Maybe we'll see you again sometime?" you said.

"Tell Sora that if you come again, he better not be sick," Belle said.

"Will do," Riku replied, turning to go. "Bye, Belle! Thanks again!" you said.

"Bye Riku, bye Maryx!" she said, waiting until the two of you had walked away until she shut the door.

"You know, it's funny how you act around people like Belle," Riku commented as you walked to the Gummi Ship. For once it wasn't raining.

"What do you mean?" you asked.

"Just…nicer, I guess," he said.

"I'm not sure why I do that," you said, pushing open the door to the Gummi Ship. "Just a habit, I suppose."

Kairi and Sora ran out into the main room almost immediately. "You're back!" Kairi cheered

"We saw you a few hours ago, Kairi!" you said, dropping your bag.

"You guys better not get sick again," Riku said, and turned to the control panel. "Where to next? Pride Lands or Port Royal?"

"Pride Lands," Sora said. "No wait, Port Royal. No, Pride Lands. Port Royal? Or Pride Lands…"

You sighed and rolled your eyes. "I missed you so much, Sora," you said drily.

"Okay, Port Royal!" he said finally.

"Cool, I want to meet this famous Jack Sparrow person," Kairi said.

"_Captain_ Jack Sparrow," Sora corrected her.

Riku typed in a location and the Gummi Ship took off. "A day and a half," he said, sitting down. "And Sora, don't even think about asking the time more than once."

"By the way," you said as the rest of you sat down, Sora and Kairi on one of the couch-things, you and Riku on the other, "did we mention that Belle and Beast are married?"

"_What_?" Sora yelled. "Them too? Why? When? Where?"

"Pfft. They love each other, a few months ago, and at the castle," you said. "Dumb questions."

"Hey, you know he always asks dumb questions," Riku joked. Sora pretended to look insulted.

"_Anyway_," Kairi changed the subject, "I know we talked like, a few hours ago, but it's great to see you guys didn't kill each other."

You and Riku grinned. "Yeah, we managed," you said.

"Managed very well, actually," Riku agreed, leaning down and kissing you without warning. You slid your arms around his neck and he moaned, sliding his tongue into your mouth and deepening the kiss. Suddenly you felt your hair getting soaked.

"What the hell, Sora!" you glared at Sora, who was standing there with an empty glass and laughing like an evil genius.

"When did that happen?" Kairi demanded.

You smirked and Riku put his arm around you . "The night we arrived at Beast's Castle," you told her.

"You two are evil!" she shrieked, whacking you relentlessly. "Why didn't you tell us?" she challenged.

"Ow! Stop it!" you whined, trying to bat her away.

"Oh, we didn't think it was important," Riku said calmly.

"DIDN'T THINK IT WAS IMPORTANT?" she and Sora yelled.

You groaned and ran your hands through your hair. "Seriously, who _throws water_ on people like that?" you said to Sora.

"But really, you're not kidding, right?" Sora asked.

Riku rolled his eyes. "No, Sora, we're not kidding."

"Of course not," you said. "But if you want proof and all…" You and Riku started kissing again. Sora threw more water on the two of you. "Okay seriously, stop doing that!" you said to Sora.


	13. Good To See You, Zola

**AN: Hi guys! So, this chapter is in Port Royal, the pirate world! *is wearing an eye-patch in honour of the occasion* To make this a lot easier, let's just pretend that Pirate of the Caribbean 2, 3, and 4 were never made.**

**RECAP:**

"But really, you're not kidding, right?" Sora asked.

Riku rolled his eyes. "No, Sora, we're not kidding."

"Of course not," you said. "But if you want proof and all…" You and Riku started kissing again. Sora threw more water on the two of you. "Okay seriously, stop doing that!" you said to Sora.

**STORY STARTS:**

"So who is this Jack Spa…_Captain_ Jack Sparrow person, Sora?" you asked, trying to squeeze the water out of your hair.

Sora grinned at the name. "He's great!" he said enthusiastically. "He's a real pirate! And he has this ship called the Black Pearl. Once we were tied up in the hull of his ship, and he got out of his ropes in five seconds!"

"I can do that," you and Riku said at the same time.

"Of course you can," Kairi said.

"And he's really random," Sora continued.

You looked at him quizzically. "Is that a good thing?"

"Oh, it is!" he said. "He wanted to keep the Keyblade once, but it came back to me, so he couldn't. And he likes rum."

"Sounds weird," you commented as you shook your head violently, splattering Riku with drops of water. "He started it!" you said when he glared at you.

Kairi stood up suddenly. "Hey, Maryx, come with me!" she said.

"What? Why?" You stood up reluctantly.

"Just…_come_!" she said again. You sighed at went with her into your room. "What's the matter?" you asked.

"You and Riku aren't faking this, right?" she demanded.

"No, Kairi," you said, rolling your eyes. "Why is that so hard to believe?"

She grinned and bounced on the bed. "It's just so cool!" she exclaimed. "You and Riku, me and Sora. Too bad there isn't someone for Roxas."

"Who's Roxas? Oh wait, Sora's nobody, right?" you asked, remember what Riku had told you at Beast's Castle.

"Yeah, he was never supposed to come out of him after all that's happened, but…" she trailed of purposely.

"Fine, don't tell me then," you said casually, walking to the door.

Kairi ran up and caught your arm. "Don't go!" she said, pulling you back. "While you two were at the Beast's Castle, the King told me and Sora that he knows a way to draw Roxas out of Sora! It was either that or draw Namine out of me, he can't do both, so we decided to bring out Roxas. AND he'll have a heart, which means he'll have emotions!"

"I understand the drawing out part, but how does he get a heart in the process?" you asked, confused.

"The King said it was too complicated to explain," she said. "But the point is that there'll be another fighter!"

"Aren't you supposed to have a weapon too?" you asked suddenly. "You should be able to fight as well, right?"

She started laughing like it was the funniest thing ever. "Seriously?" she gasped. "Me fighting? I did that once, and I don't think I'll ever be doing it again! But can I ask you something?"

"Yeah, sure," you shrugged.

"How do you do those energy blast things?" she demanded, grabbing you by the shoulders. "Sora and Riku can't do that!"

You sighed and rolled your eyes. "I've told you before, Kairi," you said. "They're just blasts of energy. You could probably do it too. I can show you how."

"Really?" she asked, her eyes huge. "Like, now?"

"Sure." For the next two hours you found yourself showing Kairi how to draw out her energy and control it. By the time Riku and Sora walked in to see what you were doing, she was firing small blasts of energy at you, and you were catching and absorbing them.

One of the blasts bounced of your hand by accident, exploding in Sora's face, and Kairi started laughing at his expression. "Sorry, Sora," you said, not sounding sorry at all.

"Maryx is showing me how to use energy attacks!" Kairi said cheerfully.

Sora gaped at her in amazement. "So you know how to blow up buildings too?" he said, stunned.

"Yes, I taught her how to blow up buildings in two hours without even damaging the room," you said. "No, Spiky, it takes a lot more time to learn how to do that. And you also need empty fields. And abandoned buildings. And a fire hydrant."

"Well, you never told me…Spiky? You said my hair was fine!" he said.

"That doesn't mean it's not spiky!" you said.

"_Anyway_," Riku said, "where's Roxas gonna sleep?"

"Not here," you and Kairi said instantly.

"No, we're going to put him with two girls in one room," Sora said, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, hold it," you said, taking a step towards him. "Was that supposed to be an imitation of me?"

"No…no imitation…Maryx…don't hurt me…" You shook your head as Sora stepped back hastily.

"He can sleep in your room, Sora!" Kairi suggested.

"Why are you asking us anyway?" you asked.

Riku smirked a little. "If we didn't, you two would've complained about why we didn't bother to ask you. Even though you have nothing to do with it."

"No, I wouldn't!" you protested.

"You definitely would've," he said.

"Why would I do that?"

"Exactly. What's the point?"

"What's the point in this _conversation_?" Kairi asked, walking to the door. "Come on, let go play cards or something, Sora."

You sat down on your bed once Sora had left. "So who exactly is Roxas?" you asked Riku as he sat down next to you. "You mentioned him before - he's Sora's nobody?"

"Yeah, it's kinda complicated," Riku said. He explained how Roxas was created and how he and Sora became one being again. "He's pretty cool though," he said. "As far as I could tell when I wasn't trying to kidnap him and all."

* * *

For the rest of the trip you taught Kairi how to control her energy, and you were surprised how quickly she learned. "You actually catching on pretty quickly, Kairi," you commented a few hours later in the main room. Sora was playing around with three bouncy balls and Riku was trying to snatch them away. "But you still can't fight yet."

"Why not?" she pouted.

"Yeah, why not?" Sora repeated, pausing long enough for Riku to grab one.

"Because you can't defend yourself yet!" you said. "It only takes a little while to learn the attacking basics, but learning defence can take months, and it's really, really painful."

"Aww, can't I at least try?" she asked pleadingly.

"I don't think you should, it's going to hur…"

She made her eyes big and wide. "Come on, please?" she begged.

"Just let her try, Maryx!" Sora said.

You hesitated and after a moment shook your head. "Okay, fine," you said at last. "Kairi, stretch out your arm so that your palm is pointing towards me." When she did, you took a step back and lightly fired a very small ball of energy at her hand. She cried out as it bounced of her hand.

"What's wrong?" Sora asked, jumping up. Kairi held out her hand to reveal a painful red mark, and tears began to line her eyes. "I tried to tell you!" you said defensively. Before she could say anything you grabbed her hand and closed your eyes. The red mark slowly faded away. "Where did it go?" Kairi asked.

You showed them your palm. The throbbing mark was now on your hand. "How did you do that?" asked Sora, scratching his head.

"It's hard to explain," you shrugged. "Nothing else can get rid of that."

"That thing was throbbing like crazy! Doesn't it hurt you?" Kairi asked.

"Not really," you lied, sitting down next to Riku. He gave you a knowing look but didn't say anything. "Anyway, that's why I didn't want you to try it," you added. "It hurts a lot the first hundred times or so."

"Hundred?" Kairi gasped.

"Exactly."

A beeping noise sounded loudly, making Sora and Kairi jump. "We're here!" Riku said, getting up to land the ship.

* * *

"It's so…piratey," you murmured as the four of you walked around the docks at Port Royal. The mark you had taken from Kairi was gone.

"Well, what did you expect?" Riku smirked.

Sora swung his head from side to side like a maniac. "What are you doing now, Sora?" you sighed.

"Where's Jack?" he said to himself.

"Somebody call me?" A swaggering pirate glided towards Sora out of nowhere. "Zola. Good to see you again, mate!"

He sighed in irritation. "It's _Sora_," he corrected.

You started laughing so hard Riku had to hold you up. "He...he called him 'Zola'!" you gasped, cracking up some more as Kairi joined in.

"Yeah…anyway! Jack, this is my friend Riku," Sora said once you and Kairi calmed down.

"The pleasure is yours, my lad," Jack said.

"'The pleasure is yours'?" Riku repeated.

"And who are these ladies?" he asked.

"Kairi and Maryx," Sora said.

Jack took your hand and Kairi's. "Delighted to meet your acquaintance," he said, grinning creepily. You snatched your hand away and glowered at him. Kairi did the same, without the death glare.

"Kairi's my girlfriend," Sora said pointedly. "And Maryx is Riku's girlfriend."

The pirate held up his hands good-naturedly. "Heh...only joking, friends," he said, as Sora and Riku gave him looks. "Quite a good thing you're here, Zol…Sora," he continued. "Me 'n Will need that Key of yours again. Some of those damn Nobody creatures are roaming 'round again. They came straight after Will and Miss Swann got married."

"Them as well?" Sora groaned.

"Are any of the Organization ever around?" Riku asked hastily.

"Actually, yes. That Luxord chap's been hanging around, and some other fellow with blue hair that acts like a mad man if you go near him."

"That's Saix!" Sora said.

"Where are they now?" you asked.

"Right here!" Luxord appeared and knocked out Kairi and Jack with two huge dice.

You rolled your eyes and got out your weapon. "Oh look, we found one of them."

"_Kairi!_" Sora yelled before Luxord knocked out him and Riku as well. Before the dice you get to you, you dodged away. "Seriously?" you scoffed. "Are you so weak that you have to cheat to win?"

"It's not that I'm weak, dear," he answered. "It's just that cheating is my thing."

You smirked and disappeared, reappearing behind him and stabbing him cleanly in the back. "Cheating can be my thing too," you hissed in his ear as his body went slack and you pulled Broken Pieces out. Acting on impulse, you shot Luxord with your Keyblade. Luckily it worked, and a beam of light hit him dead on before he screamed in pain and vanished.

"Thank gosh that worked," you whispered. You turned to the others, who were already beginning to stir. To your surprise, Jack was already standing up and brushing himself off. "Where'd that bastard go?" he said. "Bloody idiot, knocking me out…"

"He's dead," you said shortly, leaning over Sora as he opened his eyes. "Boo!" you yelled. Sora yelled out as well and rolled back on top of Kairi, who was sitting up. "Where'd Luxord go?" Riku asked, holding his head.

"He's dead," you repeated.

"I killed the lad with my own hands," Jack said.

"No, you didn't!" you said, glaring. "You were out cold!"

"You remembered to shoot him, right?" Sora interrupted.

You sighed and rolled your eyes. Yes, Sora, I remembered to shoot him. I'm not stupid," you said.

A women in a yellow dress and a man with a sword strapped to his belt came running up to Sora. "Sora! Great to see you!" the man said.

"Guys, this is Will and Elizabeth!" Sora said to you, Riku, and Kairi. "Will, this is Riku, Kairi, and Maryx."

"Maryx?" Elizabeth repeated. "I saw how you killed that Organization person. That was fantastic! He didn't know what hit him!"

You smiled a little at the compliment. "Thanks. By the way," you added before Sora could ask, "is Will your husband?"

"Yes," she said, and Jack shook his head. "Don't know what you were thinking, mate," he said.

"One of the villagers just told me that a man in a black hooded cloak was in the other side of town," Will said, ignoring Jack. "It has to be someone from the Organization. If we hurry, we can still catch him!"

* * *

"Are you sure your friend was right?" Sora asked. You were now in the section that Will said the other member was seen, but there was no one around.

"He must've moved on," Will said. "Maybe he went to the Isle de Murta." Suddenly his eyes rolled back and he was slumped on the ground. A weapon whizzed by your heads and you instinctively ducked and fired energy at it, and the weapon shattered into miniscule pieces.

"Now that wasn't very polite," Saix said. Immediately you summoned a protective barrier to surround Kairi and Elizabeth so that he couldn't reach them. "You tried to stop us once, Sora," he said, "but you failed. Kingdom Hearts is nearly ready once again. And you think that you will succeed?"

Sora and Riku didn't bother to respond. Instead they got out their Keyblades and started attacking him, and you did the same. "You lot can handle this one," Jack said, backing away.

After a little while Sora stopped to talk to you while Riku kept fighting. "See how Saix's weapons keep showing up on the ground?"

"Yeah," you said hesitantly, eyeing the three weapons lying there.

"Try and grab one before they disappear. Or two if you can manage it. You'll probably be able to get closer to him and knock him out of this Berserk state he's in." He nodded towards Saix, who was going Berserk.

In less than a second you were holding all three of them in your arms. "Give one to Riku," you said, tossing one to Sora. At first he was so surprised he just stood there, but then he sprang into action and went back to attacking Saix, armed with the weapon. You ran to Riku and handed him one of the weapons. "Hit him with this!" you said. The three of you attacked Saix, and after few minutes passed Saix was already on the ground and fading. "So you are the one that Kaori speaks of," he said, looking at you.

"Can you get this over with already?" you said to Sora, trying to ignore Saix, who was rambling something about the princess of darkness. Sora summoned his Keyblade again and fired the beam of light at him as the nobody disappeared completely.

"So, you've still got it, lad!" Jack said, clapping. "He didn't even see that coming!"

"Yeah, we got a lot of help from you!" Riku glared at him as you lowered the barriers around Kairi and Elizabeth.

Sora leaned over Will and stared at his face. "Will he be okay?" he wondered.

"Oh, he'll be fine," Jack said. "That lad's always blacking out."

"That's because you keep on hitting him with wooden boards!" Elizabeth said.

"Look, he's waking up," you interrupted. Will groaned and sat up groggily. "What happened?" he asked, then he jumped up. "Who hit me? Jack, that's getting really tiresome."

"What? Don't look at me!" Jack exclaimed. "Blaming the innocent, that's a nasty thing to do, Will."

"Saix hit you!" Sora told him. "He'd the one we were looking for. He knocked you out, that's why you were on the ground."

"Stating the obvious once again," you muttered.

Will looked disappointed as he pulled out a sword from the scabbard at his side. "I really wanted to fight one of those guys. I didn't even get to try this out," he said sadly. "I made it a week ago. Those two Organization people kept trying to steal it from me."

The sword gleamed brightly and suddenly it transformed into a black and purple key in Will's hands. "That must be why," you stated. "The dark key. We came here to get that, and they must've been looking for it too!"

"You were looking for this? Then you better have it." He handed the key over to Sora.

"What's it for? Treasure?" Jack asked instantly.

Riku and Sora explained the whole story to him.

"Come on, we've only got one key left to find!" Sora exclaimed. "We gotta get to Pride Lands!"

"Thank God, it looks like he forgot about their wedding," Riku whispered to you.

"If we come back you better tell us about the wedding, Will!" Sora added as you started to leave. You laughed and waved to the three. "Bye guys!" he yelled.

* * *

"Just one more key," Riku repeated back in the Gummi ship. It had taken off a minute ago.

"How long will it take to get to…"

"A day and a half, Sora!" you said, irritated. "How can you ask the same thing again and again in one minute?"

"Hey, Maryx, where are you going to stay when this is all over?" Kairi asked.

You thought for a moment. "I don't know," you shrugged. "With the King, I guess."

As you said this a white portal appeared and the King stepped out. "Are ya ready, Sora?" he asked.

Sora looked bewildered. "For what?"

"To bring Roxas out, of course!" he said.


	14. Hello, Roxas!

**RECAP:**

"Hey Maryx, where are you going to stay when this is all over?" Kairi asked.

You thought for a moment. "I don't know," you shrugged. "With the King, I guess."

As you said this, a white portal appeared and the King stepped out. "Are ya ready, Sora?" he asked.

Sora looked bewildered. "For what?"

"To bring Roxas out, of course!" he said.

**STORY STARTS:**

"What, now?" Sora said. "We just got back!"

"Now's better than ever," he replied. "There's not enough time to put off longer." He put out his hand and a glowing orb appeared. "Again with the crystal balls?" you muttered.

"Is this going to hurt?" Sora asked anxiously.

"It might. I'm not exactly sure if will work or not!" the King admitted.

"What – so anything could happen?" Now he looked freaked out.

"Just get it over with, Sora," Riku said. You shoved him into a seat before he could protest again.

"Close your eyes, Sora," the King said. He did, and King Mickey held onto the orb tightly and pressed it against the place where Sora's heart would be. The orb began to spin and glowed so bright that you and the others had to shield your eyes. When you opened them again you saw a blonde boy lying on the ground near the King.

_'So, that must be Roxas,'_ you thought.

"Now that didn't hurt, did it?" the King asked cheerfully as Sora opened his eyes hesitantly.

"Yes, it did!" he said. Roxas groaned and sat up, rubbing his head. "What happened?" he muttered.

Sora held up his hand in front of Roxas' face. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Sora?" Roxas jumped up, knocking Sora down. "What happened?" he asked again, looking around.

"It's kinda complicated to explain," the King said, "but in short, you're a whole bein' and ya now have a heart!"

Roxas blinked a little then put his hand on his chest. His eyes went wide and you assumed that he could feel his heartbeat. "So…I'm not a nobody?"

"Not anymore," Sora said.

"You four catch him up on what's goin' on," the King said as he made a portal. "I have to go. Good luck finding the last key!"

"Key?" Roxas asked in confusion when the King left. "What's he talking about? And who's she?" He pointed at you.

"This is Maryx," Riku said. "She's helping us on our mission. Maryx, this is Roxas, obviously."

"What mission?"

"Geez, just put him out of his misery and fill him in already," you said, shaking your head.

Sora and Riku finally told him everything about the keys and defeating Organization XIII. "There aren't many of them left," Riku added. "Just Zexion, Marluxia, and Xemnas."

"Does that mean...Axel's gone too?" Roxas asked. Sora and Riku nodded. "Sorry, Roxas, but he did try to kill us. We were just doing our jobs," Sora said.

He nodded sadly and sighed. "So let me get this straight," he said. "There are six keys. Maryx is the Princess of Darkness. Once all of the keys are collected and are pointed at Kingdom Hearts, they'll make a keychain that should be attached to her Keyblade, that will bring out the light in her heart, which will eliminate all of the people who want to use Kingdom Hearts for the wrong reasons."

"That's pretty much it," Riku confirmed.

"Now, where's he going to sleep?" Kairi asked you.

"How should I know?"

"You two didn't want to discuss it earlier," Sora pointed out.

"Well he's not sharing with us," you said, glaring at Sora.

"I'm right here!" Roxas said pointedly.

"How about if he shares with Sora," Riku said. "That way they can get to know each other or something."

"I don't really mind," he said.

"Why doesn't he just have the fourth room?" you suggested. Everyone turned and stared at you. "There isn't a fourth bedroom!" Sora said.

You sighed and rolled your eyes. "Yes there is, it's just past Riku's room. I thought it was a closet or something but then I looked inside. Turns out it's another room."

"It's a closet!" Riku said.

"It's a room. Go see for yourself." He left to go check, and Kairi whacked you on the arm. "If there was another room why didn't you say so?" she demanded. "I've been sharing with you this whole time!"

You smiled and deftly locked the door that led out into the hallway. "It _is_ a closet."

They all started laughing. Soon enough Riku started banging on the door. "So you'll share with me then?" Sora asked Roxas.

"What? Oh, sure." He was still feeling his heartbeat, and a smile grew on his face. "I still can't believe this...I actually have a heart!"

_ 'I wonder if Kaori's okay,'_ you thought as they kept talking. Then you rubbed your forehead. _ 'Where did that thought come from?_'

"Shouldn't you let him in now, Maryx?" Kairi asked, glancing at the door.

"Who?" You remembered Riku locked outside. "Oops!" You unlocked the door and hid quickly behind it as Riku ran in. "Where is she?" he demanded as you slid out of the room and quietly went into your room. There you got out the picture of you, Kaori, and Ryu in the forest and just stared at it for a long time. '_She better be okay,'_ you thought fiercely,_'or I swear that Organization is gonna…'_

"I saw that," a voice said right next to you. You jumped, making the person laugh. "Kaori said that she hated pictures, and you said you'd only show it to close friends or something," Riku added.

"Yeah, you told me."

He stared at you for a moment. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"Of course I'm okay," you frowned. "Why shouldn't I be?" '_How does he always know?_' you wondered.

"You know I can tell when you're lying..."

You sighed and rested against your head against the wall. "What if she's already dead?" you asked, biting your lip. "What if those jerks are just trying to get my hopes up? For all I know Xehanort's Heartless _did_ kill her years ago and those nobodies are lying!"

"But what if she _is_ alive? If she is, and you give up, you may never see her again just because you had some doubts. And besides," he added, putting his arm around you, "what have you got to lose if she actually is de…I mean, there's no harm in trying to find her, right?"

"I guess so," you said doubtfully. He saw the look on your face and took the photo out of your hands. "She hated photos," you said, smiling. "I know," he said.

"She was really shy," you continued, "she'd always be the one taking pictures. Posing was Ryu's job."

"He seems like he liked posing," he laughed. "What would you be doing?"

You shrugged and leaned on him. "Probably posing with him, or stopping him from falling off the rocks or whatever he was standing on. If I didn't catch him, he probably would've fallen down a million times in his lifetime; he was always trying to balance on something. Kaori had millions of drawings of him doing stuff like that. She loved drawing."

"She _loves_ drawing," he corrected. "Don't think of her in the past tense. She's not dead."

"I know, I know," you sighed. The two of you remained silent for awhile.

"Hey, why'd you lock me out of the room earlier?" he asked suddenly.

"Huh?"

"About half an hour ago," he reminded you, "you locked me in the hallway."

You laughed a little as you remembered how he thought there was another room. "I'm not sure."

"Oh sure, when you're bored you just make a fool out of me," he joked.

"And when you're ever bored, you can make a fool out of _me_," you said. "Though not in front of Sora."

"Why not?"

"Because he'll laugh very hard for a long time, I'll get annoyed with him, and I'll end up hitting him so hard he'll cry," you explained.

As you finished speaking the door opened and Sora, Roxas, and Kairi walked in. "Ever heard of knocking?" Riku asked drily as you stuffed the picture underneath your pillow.

"Were you talking about me?" Sora asked.

"Nope," you lied. "You're not that special, Sora."

"What's that under your pillow?" Kairi pointed at a corner of the photo that you hadn't managed to hide.

"It's nothing," you said, covering it with your hand.

"It's not _nothing_," Sora insisted. "Come on, let me see!"

"She said it's nothing, Sora," Riku repeated.

"Aw, just show us!" Kairi said.

"Geez, leave them alone," Roxas said.

You smiled warmly at him. "_Thank_ you, Roxas."

"_Any_way," Sora changed the subject, "do you guys want to play Bluff?"

"Sure! If you're prepared to lose this time!" Riku said.

"What's Bluff?" you asked, jumping of the bed as the others went back to the lounge-thing.

"You've never played Bluff before?" Kairi said in shock. "Poor, deprived, child!"

Riku laughed and went into the hallway with you. "Don't worry, I'll show you how to play."

* * *

"I don't like this game anymore," Sora complained.

"Why, because Riku or Maryx have won almost every single game?" Roxas smirked.

"I think it's because he didn't win at all," you smirked.

"I did win once!" he objected.

"No you didn't," the rest of you said simultaneously.

"Well, maybe if those two weren't so good at lying, _some_ ofus might've won a game," Roxas said, nodding at you and Riku.

"It's not my fault I don't burst out laughing every time I lie," you said, looking pointedly at Kairi.

"I can't help it!"

"Hey Maryx, you should play something on the guitar!" Sora interrupted.

"No."

"Oh come on!"

"No."

"Please?" asked Kairi.

"No."

"Just do it, Ryx," Roxas said.

You glared at Roxas and Sora shielded him with his arm. "Did I mention that she gets really pissed when you call her Ryx?" Sora asked.

"Go on, just one song," Riku said.

Sighing, you got up and went to get the guitar. "Why does she only listen to you?" you heard Sora complaining to Riku frustratedly.

"Do a sad one this time," Kairi urged as you came back in. You rolled your eyes and, after thinking for a moment, finally remembered a sadder song.

_Last night I heard my own heart beating,__  
__Sounded like footsteps on my stairs__  
__Six months gone, and I'm still reaching__  
__Even though I know you're not there_

_I was playing back a thousand memories, baby__  
__Thinking 'bout everything we've been through__  
__Maybe I've been going back too much lately__  
__When time stood still, and I had you__Come back, come back, come back to me here, like__  
__You would, you would if this was a movie__  
__Stand in the rain outside 'til I came out__  
__Come back, come back, come back to me here, like__  
__You could, you could if you just said you're sorry__  
__I know that we could work it out somehow__  
__But if this was a movie you'd be here by now_

Towards the bridge, memories of Kaori started creeping into your mind. If you were softer, you probably would've started crying.

_If you're out there__  
__If you're somewhere__  
__If you're moving on,__  
__I'll be waiting for you__  
__Wary, since you've been gone__  
__I just want it back the way it was before__  
__And I just want to see you back at my front door_

_And I'll say:__  
__Come back, come back, come back to me here, like…_

"Hey, she is a good singer," Roxas commented, "just like you said, Sora."

You turned to glare threateningly and Sora, who was waving his arms around and mouthing 'No'. "Did you _really_ not learn you lesson the first time?" you asked.

He laughed nervously and got up . "Um…I'm going to be...somewhere else…"

"Get back here!" You handed the guitar to Riku and started chasing after Sora.

* * *

"Oh my gosh, we're lions!" Kairi gasped.

"And I don't have the bruises that Maryx gave me!" Sora said happily, craning his neck to look at his front legs.

You tried to glare at him while attempting to walk and ended up falling on your face. Riku, Sora and Roxas started laughing as you tried to get up but fell down again, and Kairi tumbled as well. "It's not that hard, Maryx," Roxas said. He took a few steps forward and tripped over himself, landing harder than either of you did.

"Klutz," Riku said, shaking his head. He walked over to you like he had been a lion all his life. "It's easy!"

"Oh, sure, he gets it right on the first go!" Sora said. "Do you know how many times I fell down when I first transformed?"

"More than the number of times you ask what the time is?" you asked drily as you scrambled back up.

"I nearly got eaten by a hyena!"

"When you didn't ask what the time was?" Riku asked in confusion.

"No! I was running away from a hyena but I kept tripping and it nearly ate me!"

"Trust me, Sora, he would've spat you back out," you said. You managed to step forward but stumbled again. Riku laughed and picked you up. "Just do it slowly," he said.

"Why won't anyone help me?" complained Roxas as Riku helped you and Sora helped Kairi.

"Because we're not your boyfriend!" Sora said.

Pretty soon you had all figured out how to walk on four legs, although Roxas took longer than you and Kairi. Sora made you all race to the Savannah as soon as everyone could run properly. Once you reached Pride Rock, a lioness ran up and pounced on Sora. "I knew you'd be here soon enough!" she exclaimed. "Rafiki's been going on about you for the whole day!"

"Urgh, Nala, get off me!" Sora gasped.

The lioness, apparently Nala, leapt off him and smiled at the rest of you. "Who are your friends?" she asked.

"Nala, this is Kairi, Riku, Roxas, and Maryx," he said. "Guys, this is Nala, she's Simba's wife."

"It's great to meet you! Come to Pride Rock," she said. "Simba and Rafiki will want to see you, there've been some of those…" a blast interrupted her, knocking everyone but you down. "Kairi? Sora?" You poked them with your paw and realized they were unconscious.

"It's good to finally meet you, Maryx," Zexion said, appearing in a portal behind you.

You groaned and turned around. "You know, this tactic is getting kinda…" you stopped short when you saw who was with him. "Kaori?"

**A/N: MUAHAHAHA! CLIFFHANGER!**


	15. Finders, Keepers

**RECAP:**

"It's great to meet you! Come to Pride Rock," Nala said. "Simba and Rafiki will want to see you, there've been some of those…" A blast interrupted her, knocking everyone but you down. "Kairi? Sora?" You poked them with your paw and realized they were unconscious.

"It's good to finally meet you, Maryx," Zexion said, appearing in a portal behind you.

You groaned and turned around. "You know, this tactic is getting kinda…" you stopped short when you saw who was with him. "Kaori?"

**STORY STARTS:**

You stared at your sister, forgetting about Zexion, who was in human form, for a moment. Even though she was a lion cub, you could tell it was her. The fact that she actually had a pencil behind her ear and that she had the same expressive, dark brown eyes as you were a dead giveaway.

Before you could speak, Zexion raise a hand and dark walls rose up around Kaori, encasing her in a black-and-purple cell. She banged on the walls and you could see that she was trying to call out to you, but you couldn't hear what she was saying. "If you win, you can have her. If you lose, we use her for Kingdom Hearts and they die." He nodded at the others lying unconscious on the ground.

Trying to stay calm, you looked him in the eye. "What is it with you people and your deals? 'Do this or perish.' 'Join this or die.' 'Hurry up or he'll perish.' 'If you lose she'll die.' There're becoming empty threats, you know."

He smirked and a dark tornado formed in front of you, drawing you closer to him. "Big words coming from a cub," he said as you struggled to free yourself. Just before it pulled you towards him you managed to break free, and you automatically summoned Broken Pieces and attacked him, forgetting that you couldn't fight holding it in your hands. Zexion easily fended you off, laughing. After a few more feeble attempts he made a duplicate of your weapon and attacked you with it. "Just give in!"

_'Screw this,'_ you thought as he produced enough power to push Kaori further away. _'Why am I even bothering with my Keyblade?_' Your weapon vanished and you got out your claws. "You think you can claw the life out of me?" Zexion laughed.

"Exactly," you muttered. You moved rapidly to his side, and before he had realized what you had done you were attacking him the same way you normally fight, except with claws. He screamed as he tried to escape from you, black and purple blood oozing out of numerous scratches. Finally he managed to get away. Once again he summoned a dark tornado to draw you in, but this time you were expecting it. Easily dodging it, you stood back in a fighter's stance, gathering energy between your paws as quickly as possible. "Kame…ame…ha!" you yelled, sending the energy roaring into the tornado and pushing it back into him.

He tried to move away from it but couldn't, and the tornado ended up catching him and bringing him back to you. While he was momentarily dazed you used the same tactic as before, clawing and scratching him for all you were worth. He tried to block you again, but you wouldn't back down. Only a few minutes passed before he was fading away. The walls around Kaori came down, but she still hung back.

"No…impossible..." Zexion said as you aimed your Keyblade at him. Without hesitation you shot him dead.

As soon as he was gone you ran up to Kaori and practically jumped on her. "My God, Kaori, I've been looking everywhere for you!" you said and you pounced on her.

She wriggled out from under you and took a few steps back. "Who are you?"

"You're joking right?" you asked, laughing. When you saw her confused expression your face fell and your eyes widened in shock. "Kaori, it's me! Maryx!"

Kaori looked at you suspiciously and took another step back. "How do I know it's you?"

You nearly bit your lip to keep from screaming in frustration. "When we were in primary school a bully stole your sketchbook so I shoved him in his locker and left him there for two hours."

She didn't looked convinced so you hastily tried to think of something else. "When you were eleven a boy in your class asked you out to the movies so I helped you sneak out and covered for you when Miki noticed you weren't home. You spilled cola on your new dress two hours before your first formal so I bought you a new one since you were broke and our foster parents wouldn't pay for it. When that fire burnt down our house with Mum and Dad and our brother inside, Ryu was the one who had started it because he was playing with a lighter, but we lied to the police and said we had been cooking and 'left the food unattended'."

The sceptical look melted away and was replaced with utter disbelief. "It's really you!" she shrieked happily, preparing the pounce on you. Before she could a pink-haired man stepped out of a portal and calmly picked her up by the scruff of her neck. "How predictable," Marluxia said to you, oblivious to Kaori's growling and hissing. "I told the Superior you would take out Zexion with ease." With that he turned to step back into the portal.

"Let her go!" you yelled, running after him. He disappeared just as you reached out to grab the back of his cloak, and you were left standing there with one paw in the air.

"Maryx?" a voice behind you said, making you jump. Sora and Riku were standing next to you. "What was that blast?"

"Zexion," you murmured, staring at the spot were Kaori had been. "Before you ask, Sora, I killed him and shot him."

"Why do you always say 'before you ask _Sora_?'" he complained before running back to where Kairi and Roxas were waking up.

Riku shook his head. "That was stupid - doing the same thing they did in Port Royal." He saw the look on your face. "What's wrong?"

"She was right...there," you said, more to yourself than to him.

"What? Who was there? Who's she?"

"Kaori. Zexion had her…she was right there…Marluxia took her away again," you said emotionlessly.

"What?" he exclaimed. "Did he say where he was going?"

You shook your head. "Nothing at all."

"Let's just concentrate on finding the last key," he suggested. "He'll probably show up soon enough, just like the others did. He'll probably have Kaori too."

"Who's Kaori?" Roxas asked. He, Sora and Kairi were standing next to you.

"You didn't tell them?" you asked Riku in surprise.

He shrugged, looking a little embarrassed. "I didn't know if you wanted me to mention it to them."

"Mention what to us?" Kairi asked curiously. Awkwardly, you explained how Kaori was your sister and the whole situation about Xehanort's Heartless, leaving out parts like the rape and killing your friends and being an orphan. "Why didn't you just tell us all this?" Kairi asked, almost hysterically, when you finished.

"Funny, Kairi, you still haven't told us about what it was like to be kidnapped by Organization XII," Riku shot back. She went red and changed the subject, "Where's he taking her?"

"No idea," you said. "If we keep searching for the key, he should turn up."

"In that case, we should head over to Pride Rock now and ask Rafiki for his help," Nala offered, startling you all.

"Sorry, Nala," Sora said, "we forgot you were there!"

She shook her head and smiled. "What's important is finding that key and your sister, Maryx. We should get going right now."

* * *

"Hmmm…" Rafiki murmured, examining the five of you. Nala was waiting outside with Simba, who had been in Rafiki's cave when you reached Pride Rock. Grasping his wooden staff, he whacked Roxas lightly on the head. "Hey! What was that for?" he asked, rubbing his head with his paw.

Rafiki jabbed his staff in the air by Roxas' face. "What is your name, boy?"

"Roxas."

He looked at Sora and then back to him. "You and Sora share something which keeps you connected, correct? Of course it's correct!"

Without waiting for their reply he turned to you and raised his stick in the air. "Don't you try that on me," you warned.

Ignoring your remark he hit you on the head as well. Riku and Roxas let out a laugh, and turned them into coughs. "What is your name?" Rafiki asked you.

"Maryx," you replied, rubbing your head like Roxas and scowling.

"You have recently shared secrets you've kept guarded for a long time, is that right? What a question; I'm never incorrect." He turned away to examine a dark red painting on the cave wall.

"Are you a fortune teller or something?" Kairi asked presently.

Shaking his head, he didn't turn around. "No child, I am not a fortune teller. I can merely sense what has happened in the past, what _is_ happening in the present, and sometimes what might happen in the future."

"So…you're a fortune teller," Riku prompted.

Finally he turned away from the painting and faced you all again. "You're looking for the earth key, I take it?" he asked, brushing of Riku's question.

Sora nodded vigorously. "Can you tell us where it is?"

Rafiki chuckled. "It is in the quiet place where the chosen one would sleep."

"_What_?" Riku asked. But Rafiki wasn't listening anymore. "Go, go, go," he said, somehow managing to herd all five of you out of the cave before you realized what he was doing. "There is no more I can tell you!"

Riku and Roxas began to go into the cave again as he retreated, but Sora stopped them. "Don't bother. He won't say anything more."

"What did he mean, 'It is in the quiet place where the chosen one would sleep'?'" Roxas wondered. "That doesn't even make sense." After a few long minutes of thinking, and of you shifting about impatiently, Nala suggested, "By the chosen one, he could mean Simba?"

Simba nodded. "That sort of makes sense. And there was this really quiet place in the jungle where I'd sleep sometimes when I was a cub. That's probably what Rafiki meant."

"Well, why didn't he just _say _that in the first place?" you groaned, rolling your eyes. _ 'Kaori and Marluxia are out there somewhere, and we're standing around wasting time trying to solve some crazy old non-fortune-telling monkey's stupid riddle!_' you thought irritably.

Suddenly Rafiki emerged from his cave again. "Maryx, come back in, come back in, come back in!" You rolled your eyes again as you went back inside. "You'll find Kaori very soon," he said, painting a picture on the cave wall with his finger. "Marluxia will die and you and your sister will be together at last."

"How did you know about that?" you demanded. "Oh wait, let me guess, the spirits of the wandering dead told you? You heard it in the wind? You read it in a leaf?"

"Do not underestimate me, Maryx," he said solemnly. "This is very important: you must destroy the picture of you, Ryu, and Kaori in the forest that you keep in your room under your pillow."

You your eyes widened in shock. "How do you even…oh never mind…why should I destroy it? Will it unbalance life energy if I don't or something? Will it save the worlds two million years from now?"

"No more of these sarcastic questions!" he said, leaping in front of you and waving his staff in the air. "You know that the only answer for them is no!" Then he bowed his head as he breathed in slowly to composed himself. "It is very complicated to explain. Much too complex for you to understand. But understand this: if you do not destroy this photo, you and your sister will be forced to be the newest members of a new Organization that Xemnas will create."

For a moment you stared at Rafiki in silence, before bursting out laughing. "What the hell?" you gasped, trying to stop laughing. "Hell will freeze into bars of Sea-Salt Ice Cream before we even let Xemnas _live_ long enough to even think of starting a new Organization! And even then, why in the world would me and Kaori _join _it?"

"Why did Xehanort's Heartless kidnap you? Why did you go with him?" he shot back. "You're heart is unique - you already know that. You only went with him because you were forced to, for Kaori's sake. You must trust me, destroy the picture. What is it worth anyway?"

"Whoa, hold up," you said, glaring at him furiously. "What is it worth? What is it _worth_? That's the only thing, I repeat: _the only thing_, that I have left to remind me of Ryu! You of all freaks should know that, being a mind-reader or psychic or whatever!."

"Do you need it?" he asked. "Your memories of him will always remain with you, treasured in your heart; you do not need a mere picture to remind you of him."

You shook your head angrily. "You could always get Kaori to draw you another one!" he cried hopefully.

"I don't need to listen to you," you stated fiercely, before running out of the cave.

Outside Riku and Roxas were pacing around while Simba was talking to Sora, something about marriage and Nala. _'Joy, now he'll be going on about that for the rest of the time we're here,'_ you thought.

"Oh, there you are," Simba said cheerfully. "Come on, we should go to that spot before the sun goes down."

"What did Rafiki want?" Riku asked while you were running.

"It was nothing," you said. "Just something about Xehanort's Heartless."

He nodded understandingly and the two of you sped up to keep up with Simba. _'Too bad I can't tell him the whole truth. But he'd probably just tell me to tear up the picture anyway. He just wouldn't get it…'_

* * *

"Here it is!" Simba said presently. To your surprise, instead of a small spot patch of grass, there was a large clearing.

Riku looked around expectantly. "So…where's the key?"

"Look." Kairi pointed to a bush nearby. "Why would there be rose petals out here?"

"Marluxia!" Roxas said automatically.

"Then where is he?" Sora asked.

Walking up to the petals, you took a closer look at them, then groaned. "You've _got_ to be kidding me."

"What? What's the matter?" Sora asked.

"Just look at this," you sighed. "He's left us a freakin' _trail_ to follow."


	16. Whatcha Gonna Do?

**RECAP:**

"Here it is!" Simba said presently. To your surprise, instead of a small spot patch of grass, there was a large clearing.

Riku looked around expectantly. "So…where's the key?"

"Look." Kairi pointed to a bush nearby. "Why would there be rose petals out here?"

"Marluxia!" Roxas said automatically.

"Then where is he?" Sora asked.

Walking up to the petals, you took a closer look at them, then groaned. "You've _got_ to be kidding me."

"What? What's the matter?" Sora asked.

"Just look at this," you sighed. "He's left us a freakin' _trail_ to follow."

**STORY STARTS:**

"Are we there yet?" Sora asked you, since you and Riku were leading the group while following the trail.

"No," you answered distractedly, focusing on the path of petals. _'When I get my hands on Flower Boy, he's gonna wish he'd never tried crossing paths with me,' _you thought angrily, remembering how brutally he'd dragged Kaori into that portal, pulling her fur and shaking her roughly…

"Are we there yet?" Sora asked again after a moment.

"No."

"…Are we there yet?"

"No."

"…Are we there yet?"

"No."

"…Are we there yet?"

"Yup."

"Really?"

"No."

"Bitchy whore," he muttered. Everyone turned to stare at him, then Roxas and Kairi started laughing. "What?"

Roxas grinned. "I didn't even know 'bitch' and 'whore' were in your vocabulary," he said.

"Yay! He actually knows what an insult is!" you fake-cheered.

"Well, now you've proved it, Maryx," Riku said, "you're actually so irritating you can make Sora swear."

"Oh, shut up, Riku." You hit him on the arm.

He stopped suddenly, and Simba nearly walked into him. "Trail's ended," he said, looking around.

"About time!" Sora declared. "Is Marluxia here?"

You tilted you head up to look at the sky, then blinked at rose petals fell in your face. "Oh look, it's raining gay-boy petals."

"Excuse me?" Marluxia asked, descending slowly to the ground. "You're assuming that I am gay?"

"'Cuz you fight with flowers!" Sora and Roxas blurted before bursting out laughing.

Marluxia glared at Roxas. "I'm surprised, Roxas," he snapped. "You never would have dared insult me some time ago. You're only Number XIII."

"I'm not in the Organization any more, Marluxia," Roxas shot back. "You can't pull rank on me."

"Nevertheless," he said, summoning his scythe, "my power far surpasses yours."

"Gay boy, gay boy, whatcha gonna do?" you muttered, thinking of the Bad Boys movie song.

"I'm not gay!" he yelled, waving his weapon around. As he did a flurry of rose petals flew up.  
"Yeah, because _that_ supports your argument," Riku smirked.

Marluxia scowled and started making a clone made up of petals. "Why the superior wants you five idiots, I have no idea." He nodded in your direction. "Especially this..._thing_."

"Thing?" you repeated. _'Why does Xemnas want us anyway?'_ you wondered. '_It wouldn't have anything to do with what that psychotic monkey was ranting on about, would it?_' "Do I look like a thing to you, pretty boy?"

"Stop insulting me, girl!" he yelled again.

"I bet you dye your hair," Sora added innocently.

"Enough of this!" By now he had made about half a dozen clones, and they all started attacking Sora, Roxas, and Simba, while he himself came after you and Riku. Most of the time he would swing his scythe maniacally and you and Riku, or slam the scythe into the ground to make shockwaves, and even send gusts of rose petals at you that burned at contact.

Just as the others had managed to finish off the clones, and you thought the battle was over, the pink-haired nobody transformed into a mechsuit-like form. His attacks became crazier, slashing at you with scythe arms, or charging full-speed at someone, knocking them down at contact. A few times he summoned three huge petals which shot out pink rays and beams of energy to hover in the air around the five of you. Even if he used flower-power, this guy was strong. Suddenly he shrouded the whole battlefield in darkness. "Where'd he go?" Simba shouted.

"I can't see anything!" Roxas said.

_ 'Those idiots…_' you thought, sensing that they were wandering around obliviously, then you remembered thatthey couldn't sense energy like you._ 'They can't feel that he's right in front of them…right in front of them?'_ Without thinking you moved like lightning to where Marluxia was, jumping at him from behind and attacking him ruthlessly.

"How is it that you can see me?" Marluxia cried, desperately trying to block your strikes.

"Do I look mutant to you?" you asked scornfully, sending a Blizzard attack at him. "How would I be able to see you in this darkness?" Without waiting for an answer, you formed as much energy as you could into huge balls, until there were seven or eight of them floating around, then they exploded, totally eroding the darkness, so that you were all in broad daylight again. "Don't try doing that again," you warned him, "I can do that hundreds of times without even thinking of getting tired."

Before he responded, Sora and the others had caught up. Since Marluxia had made the mistake of going back to his normal form, it only a little while longer for him to be defeated.

"Sora, wait!" you exclaimed just as he was about to shoot the nobody. You ran up to Marluxia and kicked him hard in the stomach a second before he started fading. "That's for hurting my sister," you growled.

Sora laughed and shot him. "You know, he was probably already in so much pain that the kick didn't make much of a difference," Roxas informed you.

"Yeah, I know," you admitted, while hopefully scanning the area. "It was just for the sake of it." '_Where the hell would he have left her?'_ you wondered.

"Hey, you guys know what this means?" Sora said. "Xemnas is the only Organization member left!"

"I didn't even think about that," Kairi said, joining the group again. "What I'm wondering is, where's Maryx's sister? I tried looking for her while you guys were fighting the gay guy, but I couldn't find her anywhere!"

"Maybe he didn't bring her with him," Riku suggested. "Or maybe he left her at that clearing?"

You sighed and shook your head. "Let's just get that key," you said.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Sure," you replied, forcing yourself to sound like you didn't care. "She'll turn up somewhere."

"Okay then…"

"So where's that key of yours?" Simba asked.

"Wasn't it supposed to be in that clearing that Rafiki had been talking about?" Sora reminded.

* * *

Riku stared at the ground in the middle of the clearing. "That's different!"

"What is it?" You all gathered around to see what he was looking at. A green and brown key lay there in the short grass. "Marluxia must've found it and dropped it by accident while he was making that trail," Sora said.

Unexpectedly, something jumped on top of you from behind. "What the hell?" you exclaimed, thinking it was a Nobody and shaking it off. "Ow!" the lion cub said.

"Kaori!" you cried gleefully jumping on top of her, tumbling around until you were both rolling around in the grass. "Urgh, get off me, Kaori," you groaned, laughing.

Riku and the others laughed as well. "Well, that was the liveliest reunion I've ever seen," Kairi joked. Kaori blushed, seemingly noticing the others for the first time. '_Holy shit, she's blushing so hard you can see it through the fur,' _you noticed. '_I can't believe I nearly forgot how shy she is!'_

Taking pity on her, you quickly introduced the others to her, and soon you were all running back to Pride Rock, with you going slower than usual to be with Kaori and Kairi. "Are you okay?" you asked her anxiously. "Did they hurt you?"

"Nah," she said. "I mean, they pushed me around a lot, but they didn't really hurt me."

"Really? Because if they did, I'm going to pound Xemnas so hard his face is not even going to look like a…"

"Ryx, really, they didn't hurt me," she said, laughing. "Geez, you're still the same."

Kairi gasped. "You called her Ryx!"

"So? Oh yeah," she added playfully, "I almost forgot how you practically killed anyone else who called you that."

"Oh, be quiet," you said, bumping into her.

"So what's the deal with this key business?" she asked. "Marly kept going on and on about it."

"You called him _Marly_?" you grinned. "Seriously?"

"What? It annoyed him, okay?"

You opened your mouth to explain about the keys, but Roxas, who had begun to lag behind, beat you to it. "There are six keys, and when we find them all and point them at Kingdom Hearts, they'll form a keychain that goes on Ryx…Maryx's Keyblade, since she's the princess of darkness. Then light will overcome her heart, and that will destroy anyone who wants to use Kingdom Hearts for evil intentions, like Xemnas."

Kaori started blushing again. '_Oh, good grief…'_ you thought. "Thanks, Roxas," she said shyly.

"And you just heroically jumped in to explain to my sister what you couldn't understand the other day because…?" you asked drily.

He went nearly as red as Kaori at your remark. "Um…well…uh…when you explained it, you took five minutes to tell me why they make a keychain in the first place."

"Are you saying that I _rant_?" you demanded, trying hard not to grin at the sounds of Kaori and Kairi choking back laughs.

"No, no!" he said hastily. "I just…um, that is…"

"Give it up, Roxas," Riku called out him from the head of the pack. "There's no way she's going to let you win."

"Leave him alone, Ryx," Kaori said, "he was just being helpful."

"Yeah, I was just being helpful," Roxas echoed. "All I did was spare Kaori from a ten-minute lecture."

You growled and he laughed, running ahead again to join Riku, Sora, and Simba. Before you could kill him, you realized that you had finally reached Pride Rock. Rafiki, who was already waiting outside his cave, started raving to you all about how sharp the young mind is.

"I think your sister likes Roxas," Kairi whispered to you while Rafiki switched the subject of his rant to the origin of keys.

"Are you crazy?" you scoffed softly. "They only just met a few minutes ago, and Kaori doesn't even know what he actually looks like!"

"Well, once he's back in human form, she'll probably fall for him harder," she joked. "As for the 'only known each other three minutes' part, that didn't stop you and Riku, did it?"

You coughed violently to cover a laugh. "A little respect, Maryx!" Rafiki glared at you, then started jabbering again. "I guess you're right," you admitted to Kairi, looking quickly at your sister a few feet away. She was glancing over at Roxas every few seconds. "Man, that seems so weird."

"What do you mean?" Kairi looked surprised.

"I don't know," you said uncertainly. "It's just…I don't know."

"I think they're a great match. I mean, they're both really shy, when you get to know them they're both really friendly, they both like to draw…"

"I guess so, but – wait, Roxas _draws_?"

Kairi grinned and nodded. "Yeah, I went into his room…Sora's room…whatever, I went in there, and I saw something sticking out from under the bed, and it was a _sketchbook, _and it had _drawings_ in it!"

"Drawings? Really? In a sketchbook?" you said drily, rolling your eyes. "So what does he draw? Hearts? Keys?"

"Oh, shut up," she groaned. "For your information, he draws people ad scenes and stuff like that. There was one of you throwing a book at Sora."

"He drew _what_?"

"Who drew what?" Kaori came up to you.

"No one," Kairi said.

"Roxas," you said at the same time.

Kaori's eyes lit up. "He likes to draw? Cool!"

"Are you three coming or not?" The three of you looked up to see Rafiki and Simba had left, and Riku, Sora, and Roxas were ready to go.

"Yeah yeah, we're coming," Kairi said, and you started running after them.

* * *

"_Finally_," Kairi sighed, sitting down as the ship took off.

"Finally what?" Sora asked.

"You guys _finally_ found all six of those keys."

"Yeah, where are they anyway?" you asked. "Riku, you never said where you've been keeping them.

He got up from the pilot's seat and went out into the hallway, returning a few minutes later with all of the keys. "So this is it," he said, spreading them out on a seat. "Our mission's almost over."

"I wonder if it'll hurt," you said thoughtfully.

"What will hurt?" asked Kaori.

"You know, when the light takes over my heart or whatever. Like, would it burn or throb or something?"

"It'll probably be agonizing," Riku said teasingly. "It'll feel like someone's ripping into you and yanking your heart out with claws and stuffing the empty space with needles and…'

"Urgh, shut up!" you groaned, putting your hand over your heart subconsciously.


	17. Jealousy

**RECAP:**

Riku got up from the pilot's seat and went out into the hallway, returning a few minutes later with all of the keys. "So this is it," he said, spreading them out on a seat. "Our mission's almost over."

"I wonder if it'll hurt," you said thoughtfully.

"What will hurt?" asked Kaori.

"You know, when the light takes over my heart or whatever. Like, would it burn or throb or something?"

"It'll probably be agonizing," Riku said teasingly. "It'll feel like someone's ripping into you and yanking your heart out with claws and stuffing the empty space with needles and…'

"Urgh, shut up!" you groaned, putting your hand over your heart subconsciously.

**STORY STARTS:**

"For the last time, Sora," you repeated, holding up a card. "This is a _six_." You held up another card. "And this is a _nine_."

"Well, they look exactly the same when the nine is upside-down!" he complained.

Groaning, you turned around to glare at Kairi. "If it was your genius idea to teach him how to play Uno, why aren't you the one teaching?"

"I'm watching, aren't I?" she grinned.

"And it's not my fault," Sora added, "the six is supposed to have a line underneath it to show which way to read it."

"He's right you know," Roxas said from the control panel.

"Urgh…Roxas, just carry on doing…what _are_ you doing?"

He kept looking around at the controls and screens. "I'm _trying_ to figure out how long it's going to take us to get to Radiant Gardens or whatever it's called."

"We're going there? Why?" Kairi asked.

"Yeah, Sora and Maryx and I thought it would be a good idea to stock up on some things there, because stuff is way cheaper at their shops," Riku said. "And we can let Leon and the others know we're okay."

"I did promise Yuffie that we'd go back soon, didn't I?" you laughed. "And that was weeks ago."

"It's this button, isn't it?" Roxas said, leaning over to press a button. "This one shows how much time it'll take us, right?"

"Shit, don't touch that one!" Riku yelled, running up to him and pushing him away. "That one would warp us to another dimension!"

"Well, where the hell is the…"

"Geez, it's right _there_, Roxas. He tapped the screen that was almost directly in front of Roxas. "Fourteen days."

"Yeah…I knew that…" he muttered.

"_Fourteen _days?" you repeated. "That's different."

"Yeah, there are some sort of asteroids blocking the normal route, so we have to go all the way around the other worlds to get there."

"Well thanks for telling us!" Sora exclaimed. "Now I have to spend two weeks in an enclosed space with Maryx!"

"Oh, very funny, genius," you said, shuffling the cards again. "Can't we just shoot the asteroids or whatever?"

"Not enough ammo," he said, glaring at Sora, "because _someone_ thought that since there weren't any Heartless floating around the routes we wouldn't need any, so he didn't bother to stock up."

Kaori suddenly giggled and you all turned to look at her. "What's so funny?" Roxas asked. She ripped off the page in her sketchbook she'd been drawing on and held it up. It was a drawing of Sora with huge question marks in his eyes and a goofy look on his face. "Captures you perfectly, Sora!" she said cheerfully. Riku and you nearly fell of your seats cracking up.

"That's pretty good," Roxas commented.

"Hey!" Sora said.

"You know what I mean! Seriously, that's fantastic, Kaori."

She blushed lightly and smiled at him. "Do you draw, Roxas?" Even though she already knew the answer. Sneaky kid. At the same time Kairi looked at you pointedly. _'Okay, okay, I get it!'_ you mouthed at her.

"A little," he admitted.

"You should show her you're sketchbook!" Kairi suggested brightly.

"Good id…how did you know I had a sketchbook?"

Kaori's eyes lit up. "Can you show me?" she asked. "Please?" After pestering him for a few more minutes Kairi managed to convince him to show Kaori his sketchbook. They left the main room to see it in Roxas's room.

"Aw," Sora grinned, "they look so cute."

"Yeah," you said a bit softly.

"What's wrong?" Riku asked, surprised.

"Oh, it's nothing."

"Really?"

"She has some weird feeling that she can't describe about Kaori liking Roxas and vice versa," Kairi said helpfully.

"Gee, thanks Kairi," you said sarcastically.

"What does that mean?" Sora asked.

You sighed in exasperation. "Look, I don't know okay? It's just a funny feeling I have."

A slow smile spread across Sora's face, and you all groaned. "Brilliant, now he's thinking," you muttered.

"I think I know what that feeling is!" he announced. "It's jealousy! Riku has it all the time!"

"Oh, shut up Sora!" Riku said.

"Jealousy?" you repeated incredulously. "Why should I be jealous?"

"You just got your sister back, after loads of years of doing heaps of terrible stuff to do that, but she's almost immediately ditched you for a guy she just met! You're jealous!"

"Okay, first of all, Sora," you pointed out, "she didn't 'immediately ditch me'. Second, it was only two years, not 'loads of years', and third, I never get jealous."

"Oh come on, you can't _never_ get jealous."

"Never."

"So if I started making out with Riku, you wouldn't mind?" Kairi grinned.

"Yeah, just try, Kairi." You and Riku laughed.

"Okay, so if you don't get jealous," Sora added, "does that mean you don't care about Kaori and…"

"_I don't care_, okay Spiky?"

"Would you stop calling me-"

At that moment Kaori and Roxas came back, both of them holding sketchbooks. "Where did you get the sketchbook from anyway?" Kairi asked him.

"The King left it when he came last," he said vaguely, flipping through the book. "Look at this one, Kaori."

They sat down near you and Sora, and went on talking about drawing…and on…and on…after a minute or so Riku went back to the control panel and Kairi joined you in attempts to teach Sora Uno.

* * *

"What's this one?" you asked, pointing at a button on the panel.

"That one makes the ship flip upside down," Riku responded.

"Ooooh!" You reach out to press it but he stopped you hurriedly. "Last time I tried that Sora threw up."

"So why are you stopping me?" you asked half-seriously. "What's this one?"

"That one's to make video calls."

"What's this one?"

"That one blows up the spare motor."

"Cool!"

"Don't touch it!"

"Urgh…what's this one?"

"That one changes which route we're flying on."

"Half of these are boring and the other half are awesome but you won't let me use them," you complained.

"That's because we don't want to die!" he said.

"Sora can die from throwing up?" you said hopefully.

"I'm right here, you know!" Sora said.

"How could we forget?" you said drily.

"Ryx, can I talk to you for a second?" Kaori asked unexpectedly.

"Um…yeah, sure…"

Abruptly Kaori grabbed your arm, dragged you out of your seat out into the hallway and into your room. "What the hell, Kaori?" you laughed. To your surprise she sat down on the bed heavily and looked up at you with sad eyes. "Whoa, what's the matter?" you asked worriedly.

"Ryx…did you and Riku get along very quickly?"

Unable to hold it back, you cracked up laughing. "Sorry, sorry!" you said hastily when she looked hurt.

"Does that mean you got on straightaway, then?"

"Hell no!" you laughed again. "We hated each other!"

"_Really_?"

"Well…he liked me practically ten minutes after we met, and I guess I felt the same way about him, but for some reason we could hardly stand each other for weeks. We only sorted the whole situation out about two or three weeks ago…how did you know anyway? I didn't tell you!"

She smiled and hit you lightly. "It's pretty obvious sometimes, Ryx."

"Okay, okay…is this about Roxas?" You sat down next to her, slightly annoyed by the strange feeling building up inside you. _'Is Sora right? Am I actually getting jealous?'_

"How did you know?" she asked.

"It's pretty obvious sometimes,'" you mimicked her. "But you're not thinking about telling him that you like him right away, are you?"

"Why? Shouldn't I?"

"Oh, Kaori," you sighed.

"Don't do that!"

"Do what?"

"That 'oh-Kaori-my-naïve-little-sister-who-knows-nothing' sigh of yours."

"Whatever. Listen, Kaori, there's one thing that you must always remember when it comes to guys." You placed your hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "Never, ever tell a guy that you like him on the same day that you meet him, unless you've met him through some online dating crap. Don't even tell him in the first four or five days! That, and always make sure the guy isn't gay. Oh, and never kiss a guy with a tongue piercing, because that's just irritating. And it's definitely wrong if he uses more hair products than you. Actually I think everyone uses more hair products than you… And for Pete's sake, don't even look at someone who wears Harry Potter glasses and sweater vests. You know what? You should just not date anyone. That's a better idea."

"Huh?"

You sighed again and let go of her. "Okay, most of that didn't even make sense to me…look, I think you should wait a few more days, okay? Besides, I can tell he really likes you too, so it's not like he's going to get over you for some reason.

Kaori groaned and fell back so that she was lying down. "How am I supposed to wait? Even if it's just for a few days?"

"I wish you'd wait as long as possible," you whispered to yourself.

"What?"

"Nothing!"

"Ryx…you _are_ okay with this, right?"

"Okay with what?" you asked. "There's nothing even going on yet. Seriously, why does everyone think I'm jealous that you're supposedly 'ditching' me?"

She smiled and sat up again, looking at you curiously. "I didn't say anything about that," she stated. "Wait – who's 'everyone'?"

"Oh, it's just something Sora mentioned," you said, waving your hand. "Who cares what he thinks anyway? My point is that I'm fine with 'this', whatever it is, and I'm _so_ not jealous."

"Great." After a moment she spoke up again. "…You know I would never ditch you for a guy."

To your surprise you felt the sick feeling vanish as she said this. "Yeah, I know you wouldn't," you said softly. "But promise me something, okay Kaori?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"If you and Roxas _do_ get together, would you _please_ not make out with him in front of me? For my sanity?"

"Oh you're so hilarious I could die from laughing," she said lightly. "But sure, I'll never make out with him in front of you."

"Fantastic."

"I think."

"Kaori!"

"You know I'm kidding!"


	18. Good News For You, Not For Me

**A/N: Hey everyone! Yuffie's in this chapter! Yay! Sorry, it's been a few months since I've played KH2 and I don't remember the layout of Ansem's Study/Computer Room, so please forgive me if the descriptions are wrong!**

**RECAP:**

To your surprise you felt the sick feeling vanish as she said this. "Yeah, I know you wouldn't," you said softly. "But promise me something, okay Kaori?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"If you and Roxas _do_ get together, would you _please_ not make out with him in front of me? For my sanity?"

"Oh you're so hilarious I could die from laughing," she said lightly. "But sure, I'll never make out with him in front of you."

"Fantastic."

"I think."

"Kaori!"

"You know I'm kidding!"

**STORY STARTS:**

"Why. Do. You. Live. Why. Do. You. Live." You chanted over and over, banging your head against the wall with every word.

"I live so that maybe_,_ just maybe, if you hit your head like that for long enough you'll knock yourself out," Sora said cheerfully from the other side of the lounge-thing, where he was going through the fridge for food. It had been two days since you had left Pride Lands, but Sora was already getting on your nerves.

"You're lucky I haven't killed you yet," you muttered.

"It is pretty amazing that she's held out for so long," Kaori commented.

"Pfft, for so long? It's pretty amazing she's held out at all," Riku said.

"What was that, Riku?" you asked, faking confusion. "Dancer nobodies snuck up behind you and would've killed you, but your girlfriend finished them off before they could reach you, even though she was furious with you at the time? Wow, that is some girlfriend you have there, she must be hardcore!"

"I was going to attack them, you just got there before I had the chance!"

"If I hadn't got there you wouldn't have _had_ a chance."

"What are you two on about?" Kairi asked.

"At Beast's Castle," Riku told her, "there were loads of nobodies in the Ballroom, and we had had this argument about an hour before that, and Maryx killed these Dancer nobodies that were coming up behind me."

"Argument…oh, you mean had huge fight you had where you ended up calling her a bitch and slapping her and she ran out of the room?"

"It wasn't a 'huge' fight, Kairi," you sighed, rubbing the back of your head. "It was…a very loud discussion."

Sora laughed out loud and began rummaging through a compartment near the control panel. "I could hear you from my room!"

"Exactly, it was very loud."

"Wow, Riku, you did that and she actually let you _live_?" Kaori asked, stunned.

"Yeah, I'm surprised I survived," he grinned.

"Why does everyone keep assuming that I'm going to kill them?" you asked in exasperation. "I mean, in Olympus Coliseum Sora thought I was going to kill him..."

"That's because you were backing me up into a wall and pointing your Keyblade at me!" Sora protested.

"Fair enough. Then every time the King came he'd ask if I'd tried to kill Riku yet..."

"That was a reasonable question, we hated each other," Riku pointed out.

"Then in Pride Lands Kairi thought I was going to kill Roxas..."

"What?" Roxas said.

"No wait, I was just thinking of doing that at the time," you said to yourself.

"See, you think about killing people!" Roxas exclaimed.

"Well, I've never actually killed anyone besides the Organization members."

Riku gave you a look and you sighed grudgingly. "Unless necessary," you added, thinking of your old friends.

"Who?" enquired Sora and Roxas instantly.

"It doesn't matter," you said hastily. "The point is that I would _never_ do it again."

"But who was it?" Sora pressed.

"It doesn't matter!"

"I bet your own friends would've been scared of you, because if they said the wrong think you would've killed them!" Roxas said.

His words stung and you said sharply, "I was different back then Roxas; I wouldn't even think of hurting one of my friends if they hurt me."

"It's true," Kaori confirmed. "Most people thought she was the nicest person ever."

"What, were they mentally challenged?" Sora asked.

"Not as much as you," you responded. "I don't think that's even humanly possible."

"Hey wait, you know who she killed, don't you Riku?" Sora asked him. "You saw it in that crystal ball thing, right? So who was it?"

"It's none of your business, Sora," he replied, glancing at you.

"Man, he is _whipped_," Roxas laughed.

Tired of arguing, you looked at Sora and Roxas reluctantly. "Do you _really_ want to know who I killed?" you asked.

"Yes!" Sora cheered.

"I just want to know if you killed them because someone messed up your hair or if they said something that irritated you," said Roxas.

"I had to kill my five best friends, because Xehanort's Heartless forced me to." They immediately fell silent. "Exactly. You think I wanted to do it?"

"You did it because of me, didn't you?" Kaori said quietly after a moment. "To keep me alive."

"It's not like there was any other reason," you shrugged.

"Why didn't you mention it?"

"It never came up!"

"You didn't tell us that in Pride Lands," Sora said.

"She left out a lot of details," Riku informed him.

"What? Why did you do that?" Roxas asked.

"Maybe I don't want you to know!" you exclaimed.

Sora tugged at his spiky hair impatiently and groaned, "Why won't you just trust us?"

"You sound exactly like I did in the Land of the Dragons," Riku commented, echoing your thoughts. "And if you went through the same things she went through, you'd be getting nightmares too."

"Land of the Dragons? You had this sort of conversation in Land of the Dragons as well? You don't tell us anything!" Roxas said.

"Because they're private conversations!" you exclaimed.

Kairi put her hand on Roxas's shoulder. "Roxas, you have to understand...Riku and Maryx are _always_ to serious, they will _never_ stop having serious, private conversations."

As you all started laughing, Kaori started sketching something in her sketchbook at an freakishly fast rate. "Now what are you drawing, Kaori?" Roxas asked curiously.

You peered over her shoulder and smiled. "She's drawing us all laughing."

"Awww," Sora went, "let me see!"

"I've just started it! It hardly even looks like anything yet!"

"So how did Maryx guess what it's supposed to be?" he argued.

"Sora, she's my _sister_," she said, smiling, "she could tell what I'm trying to draw even if it's just a few lines."

"I bet she couldn't!" he said immediately.

"Oh, I so could," you scoffed.

Instantly a whole game was started where you guessed was Kaori was drawing in a limit of twenty seconds. Everyone else was completely baffled at every sketch, although Roxas got a few correct. On the other hand, you guessed them all correctly.

"It's a bat flying off a cliff to an apple tree!" you cried out.

"Yes!" Kaori cheered.

"How the hell is that a bat flying off a cliff to a apple tree?" Riku asked, staring at the few lines on the page. Sora had wandered over the control panel and was staring at the different buttons.

"It's right there!" you said, pointing. "There's a bat, that's a cliff, and that's an apple tree!"

"It looks like half of my Keyblade sliding off a door!"

"That's a bat wing, Riku."

"Exactly!"

"Hey Riku, what does this button do again?" Sora asked, pressing a green button. Before he could responded the ship flipped over completely. Twice. Everyone fell off their seats, and various objects flew across the room. When thing went back to normal you sat up shakily. "So _that's_ why you didn't let me do that," you said to Riku.

"Oh crap…" Sora and Roxas ran for the bathroom, cover their mouths.

"Well, that was amusing," Kaori stated.

* * *

"We're here!" Riku said days later as the ship landed.

"About time," you said, standing up and stretching. "I wonder if Yuffie's going to be angry at me?"

Sora looked surprised. "Why should she be angry with you?"

"I told you before, I said that I'd see her soon," you grinned, "and that was more than two months ago. Then again, she wouldn't even mind, would she?"

"Probably not," Riku agreed. "She'd most likely just be happy that we're here again."

"Who cares?" Sora said, jumping out the door eagerly. "Let's go!"

When you got to Merlin's house, the door opened before anyone got a chance to knock. "You're back! Finally!" Yuffie said joyfully, glomping Sora. "Do you guys know how long you've been gone?"

Sora sighed good-naturedly. "Yes, Yuffie, we know how long it's been!"

"Hey, you've multiplied!" she exclaimed, looking around at Kairi, Roxas, and Kaori.

"Multiplied?" you repeated. "Yuffie, that doesn't even make sense!"

"Yeah, yeah. So who are you three?"

Introductions were made and then Yuffie looked at you, stunned. "You have a _sister_? You're so lucky!"

"Yeah, it's great to have a mini version of yourself following you around and copying everything you do. Joking, Kaori!" you added when she hit you hard.

"Come on," Yuffie laughed, pushing past you all. "Leon's at Ansem's Study again. He's been waiting for you to come back for the past few days. He said he had a message for you or something."

"What is it?" Sora asked.

"Beats me. I was going there anyway; you'll have to come and find out." The others started walking down the street to go, but Yuffie hung back for a second. "Are you coming this time?" she asked cautiously.

"Yeah, sure." She looked surprised but didn't ask why you weren't freaked out about seeing Ansem's study.

After a long walk, you finally reached the place. In the first room there was an enormous picture of Xehanort's Heartless. You and Kaori took one glance at it and looked away hurriedly.

"SQUALL! WHERE ARE YOU?" you, Sora, and Yuffie yelled.

Somebody sighed loudly from the next room and yelled back, "We're in here!"

Eager to avoid the gigantic reminder of Xehanort's Heartless, you ran into the next room hastily with the others. There, a huge computer nearly covered one wall, and hundreds of glowing keys, controls, and little light bulbs surrounded it. On the opposite wall was some sort of hole set into shiny metal. Aerith was there with Leon, typing away furiously. As soon as Sora saw the hole in the wall he ran to the other end of the room to avoid it. "Don't worry Sora, it's not going to suck you into Space Paranoids this time," Leon said without looking up from what he was doing. _'He and Riku would get along SO well,'_ you thought.

"Space Paranoids?" you repeated. "What's that?"

"Space Paranoids is the world inside this computer. When Leon activates the hole, it shoots out a laser which breaks us down into data and sucks us into that world," Sora told you.

"That is so cool!" you, Kaori, and Kairi said at the same time.

"Sora and Goofy and Donald didn't think it was cool the first time it was activated!" Aerith said softly with a laugh. "It happened by accident, and they ended up in a prison cell!"

"Hah, lol," you and Kaori murmured.

"Lol? What's that?" Leon asked. Everyone turned to look at you two.

"L.O.L., it stands for 'laughing out loud.'" Kaori explained, before you had the chance to ask how in the world they could not know what LOL meant.

Sora looked confused. "But you weren't laughing!"

"It's called an _ex-pres-sion_, Sora," Roxas said to him slowly.

"Anyway, what's the message Squ…Leon?" Riku asked, covering a smirk.

"Right…the King stopped by here and told me to give you this." He handed Sora a scroll with the King's seal on it.

"Why didn't he make a portal to the Gummi Ship?" Sora asked. "He's done it a few times now."

"He looked really flustered. I'm thinking he was in a rush to do something. Oh, and he said do NOT open it until you get back on the ship."

"Really?" Sora said. "What were his exact words?

"...'Do not open it until you get back on the ship'."

"But why?" Riku asked.

"I don't know."

Sora looked down hesitantly at the scroll in his hands. "Well…I guess if he said to wait, we better do what he says."

* * *

Sora kept twisting the scroll around in his hands as he, you and Riku went around stocking up on items. Roxas, Kaori, and Kairi were on the other side of Hollow Bastion. "Sora, why don't you put that thing away?" Riku asked.

"Why didn't he just give it to us himself?" he said thoughtfully, more to himself than to you and Riku.

"How should we know?" you asked.

"Look, we can easily wait a little longer," Riku said, pocketing some change a moogle had handed him.

"I wonder what it's about though." You took the scroll from Sora and unrolled it. "Simple as that, Sora," you said, scanning it.

"Maryx!" Riku tried snatching it off you, but you transported yourself to the next street to read it. By the time they had caught up with you, you were trembling and had gone slightly pale, having read the whole thing.

"What's wrong, Maryx?" Riku said anxiously, putting his hand on your shoulder. You shook it off and summoned a portal back to the ship. "Maryx!" he and Sora yelled out, but you were already gone, with the letter.

When you got to the ship, you ran to your room and slammed the door shut. You sat down shakily on your bed and reread the scroll.

_Dear Sora, Riku, Maryx, and Roxas_

_You all know that so far, I hadn't been able to give you any information about the effects of this mission on Maryx. That is, when light overtakes her heart, so that it is no longer darkness. But, after a very long time spent researching and analyzing information, there's one conclusion that I'm absolutely certain of:_

_Maryx only has a 10% chance of surviving when the light takes over her heart._

_I'm so sorry fellas. I've gone through everything over and over again, but the result is the same. And even if Maryx survives, the process will be agonizingly painful. Of course, there is one fifth of a chance of you making it through, Maryx. However, since the odds are quite bad, I would understand if you would rather just defeat Xemnas once and for all, and call off the mission._

_That would be a great disappointment, though, as there will always be someone who will desire to use Kingdom Hearts for evil intentions, and by going through with the mission, future Keyblade wielders (and you four) will be spared from fighting battles with villains again and again._

_I trust you'll make the right choice._

_Whatever happens, stay strong!_

_King Mickey_

You fought back tears and flung the scroll next to you. The 'agonizingly painful' part didn't even bother you, because of what you've been through already, you were sure you could handle it. _ 'I've just found my sister again, I have an amazing boyfriend, I've even got new friends, and now there's a nine in ten chance I'm going to die?'_

**Sora's POV (What the hell, right? I just feel like it!)**

Maryx snatched the scroll away from you and unrolled it. "Simple as that, Sora!" she said.

"Maryx!" Riku exclaimed, trying to grab it back. She made a portal and left giggling.

"Dude, you've gotta put a leash on that girl," you groaned.

"Sure, because I've been known to do the impossible," he joked, running to keep up with you as you jogged down the street. It was funny: Riku had to dodge a banana peel that was on the street and he nearly slipped. '_Mmm, bananas...I could do with a banana right now! With chocolate! And ice-cream! Mmm, chocolate and ice-cream...'_

Luckily, Maryx had only transported herself around the corner. By the time you'd caught up with her, you saw she was trembling and pale. "What's wrong, Maryx?" Riku reached out and touched her shoulder, but she shook it off, then left in another portal. You and Riku ran down the next street, but she wasn't there. She wasn't in any of the other streets either. "She probably went back to the ship," you said.

"What the hell was in that letter?" Riku demanded you.

"I don't know! It was from the King, remember?"

"Hey guys!" Roxas, Kairi, and Kaori ran up to you. "Did you know the waterfall here flows _upwards_?" Kaori laughed. Their smiles faded when they saw you anxious faces. "What's the matter?" Roxas asked.

"Maryx opened the King's letter," you answered, since Riku seemed to be somewhere in his own world, "and when she read it, she made a portal and left. She looked really freaked out."

Kaori looked worried._'Maryx never shows that she's freaked out,_' you remembered. "Why don't you go find her? Where did she go?" Kairi asked.

"How should we know?" Riku snapped. "It's not like she left us directions!"

"Whoa, calm down," Roxas said, putting his hands in the air.

"Says the one who smashed a hi-tech computer out of confusion, which, by the way, was _really_ expensive."

"Riku!" you and Kairi said in shock.

"How did you know about that?" Roxas demanded.

"I was working with DiZ, bonehead, it was his computer!"

"Who are you calling bonehead?"

"That means you're calling _me_ a bonehead too, Riku!" you added.

"Well, it's your fault she read the letter in the first place, Sora!"

"My fault? You didn't take it off her!"

"I'm so sorry, I can't move at the speed of light like she can!"

"Where did she go?" Kairi asked again, unnecessarily loud.

"_We don't know where she is_!" you and Riku yelled.

"Everyone, just shut up!" Kaori shouted above you all. All of you stopped and stared at her in surprise. "Look, she probably just went back to Merlin's house or the Gummi Ship, so shut your traps and move it before she decides to leave this world or something else utterly ridiculous!"

Riku sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry Roxas. And Sora. And Kairi. I didn't need to say any of that."

"It's okay," Roxas muttered, and Kairi smiled.

"Sometimes I nearly forget you two are related," you told Kaori, "and then you remind me again!" Everyone laughed and followed you as you went back to Merlin's house. ' _Hmm...I wonder if he has any gummy bears...'_

**Your POV (Yay!)**

"Maryx?" you heard Kaori call from the lounge-thing. "Are you here?"

Shaking your head violently to clear it, you walked into the main room, scroll in hand. "Hey, what are you guys doing here?" you asked curiously.

"Jesus, Maryx, you gave us a heart attack!" Riku hugged you hard. "Are you okay?"

"Um, yeah…" you hugged him back uncertainly. "Did you guys say bye to Yuffie and the others?"

Sora and Roxas dumped the things they bought on the seats. "Yup, they said to say bye to you too!" Sora asked.

When Riku finally released you he typed in coordinates quickly at the control panel, and soon the ship took off for the World That Never Was. "For a second we thought you were going to leave without us!" Roxas said.

"I don't even know how to fly the ship," you responded distractedly. "Listen, I…"

"You should've seen Kaori yell at us," Kairi grinned, sitting down. Everyone else did too, Riku putting his arm around you. "She sounded exactly like you!"

You laughed weakly and tried to get their attention again. "You guys should really read…"

"And Riku tore into Roxas for no reason. He was flipping out!" Sora jumped in.

"I was just panicking," Riku said defensively.

Exasperated, you shoved the letter into Riku's hands. "Read that."

Frowning, he unrolled it and glanced at you quickly before reading it aloud. Everyone froze as he read it. When he'd finished, he scrunched the paper into a ball. "No f*cking way," he growled.

"That can't be true!" Kaori cried.

"Don't tell me, tell the King," you said.

To you dismay she started crying. "It can't happen! It just can't!"

"Kaori…" You got up to hug her, but she pushed you away and ran out of the room. "I'll go talk to her," Roxas said, surprising you.

Riku jumped up as Roxas left and jabbed new coordinates into the control panel. The Gummi Ship stopped and then swung around, zooming to a new course. "Riku, what are you doing?" you asked.

"Going to Disney Castle," he said. "There's got to be something he missed."

"But he said he's gone through everything…"

"And there's still a chance he missed something!" he said fiercely.

"He's right, there must be some sort of way to make those odds better," Kairi said.

"We're not letting you take that risk unless we're certain there isn't another option," Sora stated.

Seeing that they weren't going to be swayed, you sat back down in defeat. "Fine then. The King will help us sort this out."

**AN: So, those are all of the chapters that were up on Quizilla. The rest are going to come at a VERY slow rate (2-4 week gaps), since I hardly ever have time to write! Is it just me, or is that excuse really over-used by now? LOL. But, chapter 19 should be up in a few days, as it's nearly done :)**


	19. Burn, Baby, Burn

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. Disney and Square Enix do. If I owned it, Sephiroth would be WAY easier to beat and all the hot guys would be topless xD**

**RECAP:**

"That can't be true!" Kaori cried.

"Don't tell me, tell the King," you said.

To you dismay she started crying. "It can't happen! It just can't!"

"Kaori…" You got up to hug her, but she pushed you away and ran out of the room. "I'll go talk to her," Roxas said, surprising you.

Riku jumped up as Roxas left and jabbed new coordinates into the control panel. The Gummi Ship stopped and then swung around, zooming to a new course. "Riku, what are you doing?" you asked.

"Going to Disney Castle," he said. "There's got to be something he missed."

"But he said he's gone through everything…"

"And there's still a chance he missed something!" he said fiercely.

"He's right, there must be some sort of way to make those odds better," Kairi said.

"We're not letting you take that risk unless we're certain there isn't another option," Sora stated.

Seeing that they weren't going to be swayed, you sat back down in defeat. "Fine then. The King will help us sort this out."

**STORY STARTS**

***Twenty hours later***

"Donald! Goofy!" Sora ran up to the dog and that all-too-familiar duck in the Castle's garden and glomped them.

"Sora! What are you doing here?" Donald quacked.

Quietly, you groaned and hit your forehead. "God spare me, not the duck…"

"What's the matter?" Riku asked.

"Him." You pointed at Donald, who was yakking away at Sora. "He really, utterly, completely hates me."

He, Kairi, Kaori, and Roxas laughed loudly. After Kaori had started crying about the later the day before and Roxas went to comfort her, you had been very worried about your sister. Then, after about half an hour, you went to see how she was.

And she was making out with Roxas.

They had stopped and looked guilty when you walked in, but you just laughed. "Break her heart, and I'll break your face, Roxas," you smiled cheerfully before leaving. Outside the door you almost shuddered. _'That was so cliché it was creepy,'_ you thought, thinking of when you and Riku kissed at the Beast's Castle.

The other three turned around to see what was happening. "YOU!" Donald yelled, snapping you out of your flashback.

You groaned again and rolled your eyes. "Nice to see you too, Donald."

"So, you two don't like each other, huh?" Sora said.

"Nope," you smiled. "Ever since I defenestrated him."

"What does _that _mean?" Kairi asked.

"I threw him out a window," you replied. Everyone but Donald laughed.

"Good to see ya again Maryx, a-hyuk!" Goofy greeted you.

"You too, Goofy!" You cheered up instantly. Everybody except, once again, Donald stared at you in amazement and shock. "What?"

Sora gawked at Goofy and you, stunned. "You…you actually like Goofy? But he's goofier than me!"

"Aw, Maryx just likes me 'cuz I'd help her out when Donald was yellin' at her for bein' sarcastic!" he said, slinging his arm around your shoulders. Donald squawked and glared at you.

"And he made feel better when the King trained me for ages," you added as you hugged him.

Riku tilted his head up to stare at the clouds. "What are you doing?" Roxas asked.

"Looking for flying pigs," he replied seriously. You hit him on the arm and he grinned at you.

"So what did you come here for?" Donald asked.

Immediately everyone sobered. "We need to see the King," Riku said.

"He's in the library…" Goofy trailed off as you all started running. "He's very busy!" Donald yelled after you.

"It's urgent!" You all yelled back.

After Donald and Goofy were out of sight and you were jogging through the huge castle, Sora halted to a stop. "Where was the library again?" he asked you.

"Urgh, just follow me, doofus." Soon you were pushing the doors open to the vast library. The King was there, reading a book. He looked up as you burst into the room. "'Maryx only has a 10% chance of surviving?' Mickey, what the hell is this?" Riku said angrily. You all glanced at him in surprise. _'Man, he must've been dying to say something all this time,'_ you thought.

"Fellas, there really is nothing I can do…" the King started.

"There must be _something_!" Kaori insisted. The King blinked a little, then smiled widely. "Oh, you must be Kaori!" he exclaimed. "So ya _are_ alive!"

"Your Majesty, please don't try to change the subject," Sora interrupted. "Have you really gone through everything?"

He sighed heavily and tapped the stack of books in front of him. "I was just goin' through it again," he responded. "If ya really want to see for yourself, take a look at this." Almost struggling to pick up the heavy book he'd been reading, he handed it to you.

'The Power Of Light Over A Dark Heart,' the chapter was called. You sat down at the table and read the whole chapter carefully. In a short time you looked up at the others, who were waiting expectantly. "He's right," you said in a nonchalant tone. Really, you felt like throwing up.

They all leaned over your shoulders to read the pages. "It _is_ true," Kairi mumbled.

"Of course it's true!" King Mickey responded. "I would never tell ya somethin' like this unless I was absolutely sure that it were true!"

"There's just one thing I don't understand," Sora said unexpectedly.

"What's that, Sora?"

Sora rubbed the back of his head, looking confused. "How can the light harm someone that way? I mean, of course it could destroy Xehanort's Heartless and Xemnas and people like that, but Maryx? Her heart may be dark, but she's not evil."

The King thought for a moment before answering. "Riku, remember when Xehanort's Heartless nearly took over your heart in Castle Oblivion, and I came and saved ya with the light?"

"Of course!" Riku said. "It hurt like crazy, but it did save me."

"Well, the light has that affect on heart with darkness in them. Fully banishin' the darkness puts a huge amount of stress on the heart, and it causes a lot of pain! In almost all cases, the strain is too much on a completely dark heart, like Maryx's, and it will actually rip apart and be eradicated."

"Rip apart?" you repeating, feeling even sicker, but covering it up.

He patted your shoulder kindly. "Your heart is very strong, Maryx. So, ya have a slightly better chance of makin' it out alive. But still, you're probably going to die."

"You're just a bundle of joy today, you know that, Your Majesty?"

"So…there are no alternate options?" Roxas asked.

The letter King Mickey had sent was lying on the table as well, and he picked it up and scanned it. "Like I'd said, you could just defeat Xemnas, then go on missions every time somebody decided to use Kingdom Hearts for the wrong reason. But then the Key bearers after you would have the same fate: to take on never-ending', countless missions."

The group was completely silent, then eventually you said the first thing that came to mind. "Why don't we just destroy Kingdom Hearts?"

"_WHAT?_" Riku, Sora, Roxas, and the King yelled.

You put your hands in the air and said, "I'm just saying, it would save everyone a lot of trouble if Kingdom Hearts didn't exist." _'And it would be much better for me,_' you added mentally.

The four looked at you incredulously and you gave up. "Never mind then."

"You know, she _is_ on to something…" Roxas started.

"Yeah, it does kinda make sense." Kairi agreed.

"_NO_," the King said firmly. "We are _not_ destroyin' Kingdom Hearts. It's literally the heart of everything!"

Riku groaned. "Ansem would know what to do."

"How could _Ansem_ help?" you said in horror.

"I mean DiZ. The real one, not the fake one," he said.

"Oh, right…so why don't we go find him?"

"He built a digital encoder that would seal away Kingdom Hearts," Sora told you. "Though he tried it out, the power surge from Kingdom Heart blew it up, and…he died in the explosion."

"I thought I told you about that," Riku said.

"You hadn't mentioned that…Ansem died. You just said that you nearly died, but it made you go back to your original form. Aren't I supposed to be the one who leaves out important details about the past?"

"I HAVE AN IDEA!" Sora yelled at the top of his voice. Everyone spun around to face him. "What is it?" you asked excitedly.

"Wait, no I don't…"

_ 'Why am I not surprised?_' you thought tiredly. _'I wish they'd just stop talking about how I'm almost certainly going to die…'_ Next to you, Riku still looked pissed. "An ninety percent chance of dying isn't that bad," you said, in an effort to cheer him up. You tried to sound like you weren't concerned about all of this.

He looked at you weirdly. "You _want_ to die?"

"No! I meant, if you put ten pens in a bag or something, nine black and one blue, there's still a chance you would pick the blue one if you took one out without looking."

"Maryx, this is more important than pens in a freakin' bag!"

"Urgh, for crying out loud…I'm trying to say that there is still a good chance I could live. It's not like it's one blue pen and nineteen black ones or something."

"Most people would pick one of the nine black pens!"

"See? Most! Not all people! Some would pick the blue one!"

"It's too unlikely. There're more of the black ones!"

Kaori yanked at your hair sharply, making you cry out. "What was that for?"

"What's this got to do with pens?" she asked.

You sighed heavily. "Look it was just an example. You know, when people use a small situation to describe a bigger situation?"

"Could you be just a little more serious about this, Maryx?" Roxas asked.

"Yeah, all this time you've just been sarcastic and casual about everything," Sora jumped in.

"You could care a bit more!" Kairi said.

"Doesn't this _matter_to you?" Riku asked.

"You think this is easy for me? I'm the one with the death sentence!" you snapped at them finally. "Jesus, you guys keep going _on_and _on_about how likely it is I'm going to die, without even considering that I might be scared out of my mind about this, then you start saying I don't _care_? It's _my_ life we're talking about here, I'm pretty sure I care!"

"Ryx…" Kaori started. You pushed back your chair to leave, but Riku stopped you. "I know you're worried about this," he said quietly, so the others couldn't hear, "and you know they are too. But Maryx, you can't just accept this without seeing if there's a way out."

"Yes I can," you hissed back obstinately. "And there _is_a way out: taking a chance and hoping that I'll make it through. Besides, what have I got to lose?"

Immediately you wished you could take that back. "What have you got to _lose_? How about your life? Your sister? Sora, Kairi, Roxas? The King? Me?"

"Okay, okay! That was a stupid thing to say," you replied, still whispering. "I'm sorry, Riku, it's just hard for me to think straight at right now."

After a moment he smiled at you sympathetically and took your hand. "Yeah I know. I'm sorry too." He leaned in to kiss you when Roxas interrupted. "Oh, at least spare us the make-up kiss," he groaned, making Sora and Kairi laugh.

"You're okay now, Maryx?" King Mickey asked in concern. You nodded and beamed at him reassuringly. "So, what's the decision? Do you still want to do this?"

Everyone stared at you, waiting for a response. "It's your choice," Riku said softly, squeezing your hand.

You took a deep breath and tried to get rid of that sick feeling inside you. "I'll do it."

* * *

After agreeing to the King's offer of staying at the castle for a while, it had taken a few days for you to actually gather up the courage to leave. For you it was nerve-wracking, knowing that you could be travelling to your end. Thankfully Riku and the rest weren't in a rush to leave. In fact, they seemed relieved that you were putting of the departure. Nearly two weeks later, though, you reluctantly told Riku that it was best if you left.

Bidding farewell to King Mickey, Queen Minnie, and Goofy was heart-wrenching. Saying goodbye to Donald was much easier.

The first thing you did once the ship took off was to go to your room and rip the picture of you, Kaori, and Ryu to miniscule little pieces. No matter how ridiculous the idea that Xemnas could start a new Organization with a _picture_, you weren't willing to risk Kairi getting in more danger. _'Hah, and yet I'm agreeing to face death in less than three days,'_ you thought ruefully as the last remnants of the picture fluttered to the ground. Not satisfied with that, you quickly hit the pile of shreds with a Firaga.

As you watched the flames in fascination, Riku walked in without knocking. He stopped short when he saw the mini-fire. "Now you're a pyro?" he exclaimed frenziedly.

"Yes, Riku, I've also secretly been cutting myself," you sighed. "Do me a favour, don't tell Kaori about my drug addiction?"

By then the flames had reduced the picture to ashes. "What were you burning?" he asked, ignoring your sarcasm.

"That picture of me and Kaori and Ryu," you said calmly, scooping up the warm ashes and dumping them in a rubbish bin.

"Why on earth did would you burn it?" he said as you dusted off your hands.

Stupidly forgetting that you hadn't told Riku what Rafiki had said, you replied, "Rafiki had told me to do it, but I didn't want to before."

"Rafiki?" He sat down next to you and looked at you curiously. "You said he only wanted to talk to you about Xehanort's Heartless."

"Is that what I said?" you laughed, attempting to cover your tracks. "I could've sworn I said Xemnas!"

He sighed loudly. "What did he actually want, Ryx?"

"Well...he said that I should destroy the picture because Xemnas was going to start a new Organization, and somehow with the picture and threatening to hurt Kaori he would force me and her to join."

Riku stared at you for a moment before he cracked up. "And you believed him?" he gasped, trying to stop laughing.

"Of course not!" you said in annoyance. "Why do you think I waited so long to do it?"

"Come on, Maryx, what are the chances of Xemnas starting a new Organization with a picture?"

"Ninety percent?" you said drily.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought you might tell me to destroy it anyway..."

He stopped laughing and became a little more serious. "Ryx, that was the last thing you had to remind you of Ryu."

"That's why I didn't want to do it."

"You could've told me! I wouldn't have told you to destroy it, trust me."

You shook your head and smiled. "Of course I trust you, Riku, I just wasn't sure at the time." _'Boring Conversation! Boring Conversation!'_ a voice sang out in your mind. You stopped Riku from what he was about to say by kissing him roughly. In a few minutes you broke apart, breathing heavily. He hardly gave you any time to catch your breath before he started making out with you again. Soon, you were subconsciously aware of the fact that you had pulled his shirt off and that he had pinned you down.

You were getting wildly excited, arching up and groaning in pleasure. He teased you with his mouth, kissing you hungrily and withdrawing before you were satisfied with the kiss, over and over, making you whimper. His hands moved lower and lower, and you arched even more as his hands swiftly unbuttoned your pants and started feeling you eagerly. They made contact with your area, and he gently started pressing his fingers against it. At that moment, he seemed to transform in your mind's eye. Instead of Riku, you were looking at the man you hated.

Xehanort's Heartless.

You gasped and blinked furiously, trying to get that horrible image out of your mind. Riku continued what he was doing, assuming you were gasping from pleasure. _ 'Stop thinking about that monster!'_ you thought angrily, kissing Riku savagely and pressing yourself harder against his fingers to distract yourself from the growing image. _'This is Riku, not Xehanort's Heartless!'_

Nevertheless, no matter how hard you tried, you couldn't block out the memory of Xehanort's Heartless forcing himself on you, ripping off your clothes, laughing at your struggles and screams...

Unable to take it any longer, you pushed Riku off of you, ending the live nightmare. At once the memory was gone, and Riku was left there lying next to you, panting hard. "What's the matter?" he asked, trying to kiss your neck.

"Stop, Riku," you said in a trembling voice. He stopped immediately and brushed your hair out of your face. "Sorry," he said, sounding regretful. "Too soon, right?"

"No, it's not that," you replied, really annoyed at yourself for ruining the perfect moment, and that tears were starting to form.

"Oh God, Ryx, please don't cry," he said in concern, wiping away a single tear that fell. "Was it that bad?"

"No, no..." you shook your head violently. "It's just...you were..."

"You can tell me," he encouraged.

You bit your already-bruised lip and looked away from your boyfriend. "I just...I couldn't stop thinking about HIM."

A fleeting look passed over his face. Was it anger? Horror? Shock? You couldn't tell.

The look disappeared almost as soon as it came. "Is that why you gasped just now?" he asked quietly, and you nodded in silence. "I'm so sorry," you whispered.

"Don't say that!" He pulled you up as he sat up, grabbed you by the shoulders and bent down a little to look you in the eye. "Ryx, you know about how Xehanort's Heartless used me to try and make me surrender to darkness. A really small piece of him still corrupts my heart. If you thought of him now, don't say you're sorry. It's not your fault that he's left you scarred. It's mine...you told me about what he did to you but I still forced myself on you."

"No!" you said again. "You were NOT forcing yourself on me at all, Riku! I couldn't stop myself from remembering him, but please don't blame yourself." You halted him from whatever he was about to say by kissing him softly and sweetly on the lips, only doing so for a few seconds before breaking off and resting your head on his shoulder. You listened to his heart beat speed up slightly and then gradually slow down as he held you. "That's actually another reason why I want to go through with this mission," you spoke up. "I didn't realize I wanted it, but now I know, I HAVE to do this, Riku. To stop people like him hurting others."

"Yeah...I get that now." He stroked your hair and hugged you a little tighter before letting you go. "Come on Ryx," he said, standing up and offering you his hand.

"Where are we going?" you asked in surprise.

"To the main area. We've been in here for a while."

You were almost out the door with him when he stopped you abruptly. "You do realize I called you Ryx several times and you didn't even notice?"

"Oh, I noticed. But it sounds nice coming from you."

"Good, that means I don't have to die a horrible, painful death." You started chasing him after he caught sight of the death glare on your face.

**AN: *Yawns* Such a fluffy chapter. But at least I finally gave you guys a make-out scene between Riku and Maryx! The good news is that chapter twenty will be in The World That Never Was, and you'll finally get some fight scenes again!**


	20. Last Kiss

**AN: I'm very sorry, but I haven't played the game for months. So, please forgive me with my descriptions of The World/The Castle That Never Was, because they're probably very off :P**

**RECAP:**

"That's actually another reason why I want to go through with this mission," you spoke up. "I didn't realize I wanted it, but now I know, I HAVE to do this, Riku. To stop people like him hurting others."

"Yeah...I get that now." He stroked your hair and hugged you a little tighter before letting you go. "Come on Ryx," he said, standing up and offering you his hand.

"Where are we going?" you asked in surprise.

"To the main area. We've been in here for a while."

You were almost out the door with him when he stopped you abruptly. "You do realize I called you Ryx several times and you didn't even notice?"

"Oh, I noticed. But it sounds nice coming from you."

"Good, that means I don't have to die a horrible, painful death." You started chasing him after he caught sight of the death glare on your face.

**STORY STARTS:**

That night, you woke up feeling thirsty, and you grudgingly forced yourself out of Riku 's arms to go to the main area for some water. Ever since Kaori had turned up it had been too crowded and messy in your bedroom for you, Kairi, and Kaori to stay in, so you and Kairi decided to take turns staying with Riku or Sora each night. Obviously, you stayed with Riku and Kairi stayed with Sora.

On the way back from the main area, you heard muffled sounds coming from your own room. You quietly pushed the ajar door open and went over to the bed, knowing what to expect.

Kaori was sitting there, curled up in a fetal position, and sobbing softly. Sighing a little, you wrapped her in a tight hug. "You dreamt about Xehanort's Heartless and Ryu again?" you whispered, and she nodded.

You were still slightly surprised that Kairi never woke up when Kaori had these dreams, which was almost every night. _'At least,'_ you thought as your sister cried, _'that jerk didn't hurt her in any other way…those__memories gave me horrible nightmares.'_

"Ryx?" Kaori looked up at you tearfully. "How did you get over it?"

Taken aback, you answered, "Get over what?"

"What Xehanort's Heartless did to Ryu…and to you…how did you move on?"

"Kaori, I haven't 'moved on' at all. I don't think I ever will either."

"But you don't act like it!"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, for one you don't get nightmares like I do-"

"Don't get nightmares?" you repeated incredulously. "I used to get nightmares almost every night, Kaori!"

"You _do_?"

"Hell, I'm surprised Riku hasn't broken up with me just for that, at first I'd keep him up half the night when I get them!"

The look on her face was priceless. Not that you were joking. "You…you never told me that," she whispered, drying her eyes. "Then again, you wouldn't tell anyone, would you?"

"Yeah, that's true."

"And you're not as cheerful as you used to be before," she continued, "and you snap at people more often, and you get irritated really easily, and you don't like most people touching you or hugging you…"

"Okay, I get it, I've changed," you laughed. "Get some sleep, you'll feel better in the morning."

"Thanks, Ryx." She hugged you one last time before diving back under the covers.

* * *

"We're here," Riku said as the ship landed. Nobody moved. "And…we're still in here because…?" you asked.

"Are you absolutely sure you want to-" Sora started to say.

"_Yes,_ for the millionth time!" You jumped out of the ship and the rest hesitantly followed.

After running around the deserted town for a long time, you finally stopped to catch your breath. "You two _do_know what you're doing, right?" Kairi asked Sora and Riku.

"Sure! All we have to do is get to the castle!" Sora said.

"Which will be when, exactly?" Kaori asked.

"We'll find it. How hard can it be?" Riku scoffed. Mere seconds later hundreds of Nobodies rose out of the ground. There were so many different kinds you couldn't even count them all. They swarmed around you, swaying hypnotically. "Yeah, I think you jinxed us, Riku," you commented.

Roxas got out his two Keyblades, Oathkeeper and Oblivion, while Kairi got out her Destiny's Embrace Keyblade in one hand and created a ball of energy in the other. "You four go ahead. Roxas and I can take them on."

"Are you sure?" Sora asked worriedly, but Riku grabbed him by the arm. "Come on, they can take care of themselves!" he exclaimed dragging him away.

You, Riku, Sora, and Kaori ran down the seemingly never-ending streets. Soon, you reached a looming skyscraper with broken neon signs hanging of it. "Memory Skyscraper," Riku muttered. "That means we're getting close to the Castle."

"So, the Keyblade warriors have finally arrived."

You spun around to see a black-and-purple portal opening up to reveal the Nobody form of Xehanort's Heartless. "Is that An…Xehanort?" Kaori whispered to you.

You shook your head. "That's Xemnas. His Nobody."

"It is not often that we are graced with the presence of the Princess of Darkness," he said, so slowly that you wanted to slap the words out of him. "Why do you waste your time with these fools? You could have power, strength, hundreds of Nobodies at your command. These two," he pointed at Sora and Riku, "they ruined my chance of regaining my heart…ruined my chance of regaining my emotions. With your help, I can get that chance once again. Join me, and I will give you everything you've ever wanted, and more power than you can imagine.

You stared unblinkingly at a neon sign that was blinking on and off in the distance. "Uh, Ryx?" Riku nudged you lightly.

"Hmm? Sorry, I zoned out at 'waste my time.' Do you have any idea how slowly you talk?" You got out your Broken Piece's, and next to you Sora and Riku got out their Keyblade too. To Riku and Sora's surprise, even Kaori summoned weapons. "Since_when_ could you use katanas?" Sora cried.

"What, you thought she didn't have a weapon? She's my sister!" you exclaimed.

"Can you use them?" Riku asked, seeing as Sora were too stunned to talk.

"Of course!" she replied. "And I wanna fight this guy - I couldn't even try attacking Xehanort's Heartless, smashing this guy is the next best thing!"

At that Riku pulled you away from the scene, yelling out that you'd be back as soon as possible. Before you left Kaori gave you a huge hug. "Good luck," Kaori said. "I love you!"

You smiled and hugged her back. "Love you too, sis."

You and Riku left, and she and Sora started fighting Xemnas. "She's actually got a good point there, about fighting Xemnas," you commented as you finally reached the entrance to the Castle. "Too bad I can't stay back and fight him too!"

Soon enough you and Riku had reached the rooftop of the Castle. There was an amazing view of a colossal, off-white moon in the night sky. If you hadn't been scared out of your mind about what was about to happen, you probably would've been excited to see Kingdom Hearts for the first time. "You got the keys?" you asked, and Riku nodded, fishing all six of them out of his pockets. Awkwardly, you took three of them and twisted them around in your hands, ready to point them at Kingdom Hearts.

"Are you sure you're ready?" he asked once again.

"Let's just do this, okay?" He sighed and pointed the keys at the heart-shaped moon, with you doing the same. Beams of light flashed out from the keys, in the same way light blasted from the Keyblade when Sora shot an Organization member. They joined to form a single beam that hit Kingdom Hearts right in its centre. Kingdom Hearts started to glow eerily, getting brighter and brighter until you were forced to shut your eyes. Eventually you opened your eyes again and saw something forming in the air directly in front of the moon, although you couldn't make out what it was.

It began to shape itself into a dark, shadowy circle that stood out in contrast to the dazzling moon behind it. Tinges of light began to show in the blackness, and soon it formed a border. The darkness seeped into the empty space inside, resulting in a jagged heart about the size of your palm, made with pure darkness swirling inside and framed with thin strings of shining light. Links of light and darkness were attached to the top of it. Kingdom Hearts at last ceased its glow, and the finished keychain gradually floated down to hover in front of you. Only hesitating for a second, you took it with a surprisingly steady hand. "Pretty," you said softly.

"You _would_ find darkness pretty," Riku said, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, shut up. There's light too!"

"Whatever, Your Highness."

"Do _not_ call me that," you glared, and he laughed at the look on your face. Without warning he spun you around and kissed you roughly, grabbing your waist and pulling you closer. Nearly three minutes later, you looked him in the eye as you pulled away. "What was that for?" you murmured.

"That might've been the last kiss we'd ever have," he said quietly.

"Riku…"

"I said 'might've', didn't I? Besides if anyone can survive this, it's you."

You reached up and kissed him lightly. "You better stay back," you whispered. "The King said you could get hurt if you stand too close." He nodded briefly and, after a moment's hesitation, let you go and walked away so that he was at the other end of the roof.

You turned away from him so that you were facing Kingdom Hearts again. Thousands of questions ran through your mind: where you supposed to make your weapon disappear when the light started taking its effect? Would you get a new Keyblade altogether, if you made it out alive? Could you keep the keychain? Would your personality change back to the way it used to be? Ignoring the voices in your head, you took a deep breath and attached the keychain to your Broken Pieces, bracing yourself for the pain that you knew would come.

Immediately an orb of light appeared out of nowhere and whirled around your front, near your heart. You felt a harsh stinging sensation as you watched the light pulling darkness out of your chest, involuntarily flinching. Having no idea how the light was sucking darkness out of you, you hoped that you would be able to put up with the pain.

As soon as you thought that, the darkness seemed to resist, and it was almost like there was a tug-of-war going on between it and the light. The light was winning, and as more and more darkness was forced out, the stinging turned into a horrible hurting that grew and grew. It felt like, as the King had said, you heart was being ripped apart, and like someone was stabbing you all over with red-hot knives. Your body was overcome with pain and you fell to your knees, clawing at your hair as the pain pulsed through your whole being. Every part of you was shrieking to stop the pain. You felt like screaming like there was no tomorrow.

So you did.

**Riku's POV**

_ 'This doesn't seem too bad,'_ you thought hopefully, watching an orb of light drawing out the darkness from Maryx. You could see her flinch, but other than that she seemed fine. _'Maybe she'll get through this after all…'_

Soon, though, those thoughts were firmly dashed when you saw her bending over and grabbing her hair. She began trembling all over, and fell to her knees. Only a few seconds later the screaming started. Every shriek felt like a blow to your heart.

"She wants me to stay back, she wants me to stay back," you chanted under your breath, unable to rip your eyes from the torturous scene in front of you. It was fairly obvious now that she was crying. She clutched at herself everywhere, arms, legs, head, chest, stomach, in what appeared to be an attempt to try and block something. Minutes passed, and not for a moment did she stop sobbing or screaming.

'_I can't take this anymore!'_ You ran to Maryx and before you had even reached her you winced at the force of the light. It was an unstoppable power, alternating between pulling you forward and pushing you back. You pushed forward and knelt down next to Maryx, and you felt like someone had stabbed you in the heart when you saw her face. Helplessness and pain was written all over it. You'd never seen her hurting so much before, not even with Xehanort's Heartless.

Not knowing what else to do, you put your arms around her and held her tightly.

**Your POV**

'_I can't take much more of this!'_ Eyes squeezed tightly shut, you hardly even noticed how hard you were screaming or crying. The only thing you were aware of was the unbearable agony. Just a few inches in front of you, the orb of light was sucking up the darkness harder than ever, drawing it in at an alarming rate. That didn't help your situation at all.

Suddenly you felt two strong arms wrap around you, and you managed to open your eyes wide enough to see Riku holding you securely. '_Is he out of his mind?'_

"I'm not leaving you like this, so don't tell me to leave!" he said.

The orb suddenly started vibrating like crazy, but not all of the darkness had been absorbed. Then it moved closer and closer to your chest, and you realized that in was about to enter your heart and destroy the darkness from within.

It flashed brightly before it entered, and the pain escalated to an unbelievable level. Black spots started staining your vision. '_If I die now, at least this pain will end!'_ you thought hysterically.

Riku, realizing how much this was hurting, held you even tighter, saying incoherent words in your ear, trying to ease the suffering, but it barely helped. The black spots got larger and the pain became even worse. Your voice was hoarse from screaming and you couldn't even breathe anymore.

The last thing you were aware of before the pain suddenly stopped was Riku saying something in one more attempt to calm you down.

"I love you..."

Then your eyes shut and you slipped into darkness.


	21. The Void

**A/N: I realized the other day when I was playing KH2 again, the 'roof' of The Castle That Never Wasis the 'Altar of Naught'. How the hell did I forget that? *drifts into a daydream where no one never forgets a thing***

**Writing Merlin's bit was so weird!**

**Sorry for the crappy ending in this chapter, but it was already nine pages and I didn't want it to go any longer. There is quite a bit of POV switching, so pay attention ;)**

**RECAP:**

Riku, realizing how much this was hurting, held you even tighter, saying incoherent words in your ear, trying to ease the suffering, but it barely helped. The black spots got larger and the pain became even worse. Your voice was hoarse from screaming and you couldn't even breathe anymore.

The last thing you were aware of before the pain suddenly stopped was Riku saying something in one more attempt to calm you down.

"I love you."

Then your eyes shut and you slipped into darkness.

**STORY STARTS:**

**Riku's POV**

All at once Maryx went completely slack in your arms. You felt a tingling sensation through your body - no doubt an effect of the light - but you ignored it. "Maryx?" You shook her as lightly as you could, but she didn't stir. "Come on Ryx, stop playing around." No response. _'God no, please don't be dead,_' you thought desperately.

Roxas and Kairi came running up the steps to meet you, wide grins on their faces. "We finished them all off!" Roxas bragged. "You should've seen Kairi, she kept blasting them with these awesome energy attaaaa…" He trailed off as he and Kairi saw Maryx's state. "She's okay, isn't she?" Kairi asked.

"I…I'm not sure…I mean, she's breathing…right?" Just to double-check, you looked back down at Maryx to see that her breaths were short and ragged.

You barely noticed as more people approached. "Man, Kaori is awesome!" Sora exclaimed. "She was like that killing machine in that movie with the zom…bies…"

"_Ryx!"_Kaori fell to her knees and tried to grab her from you. "Ryx! Wake up! Talk to me!"

"Be careful," you choked out, pulling Maryx back a little. "You might hurt her."

Kairi, who was surprisingly calm, knelt down and delicately put her hands to Maryx's neck. "Oh…her pulse is hardly there at all. You guys should heal her, fast."

You fumbled around your pockets for potions and ethers, and started pouring them down her throat as carefully as you could. When she didn't react to them, Sora and Roxas gave her their stash, but still she didn't wake up. "Try Curaga," Kairi suggested.

Sora raised his hand and said, "Heal." A green glow surrounded her, and everyone leaned in closer to see what would happen. Unfortunately, when it faded you saw that nothing had changed. "Why isn't anything working?" Kaori asked frantically, looking close to tears.

"Calm down, Kaori," Roxas said gently, crouching down and putting his arm around her. "She's still alive."

"She's all I have left!" she snapped, even though she leaned back into him. "She can't die, she just can't!"

"She'll be okay," you said quietly, in an attempt to convince yourself more than her. "We just have to get her somewhere safe so that we can treat her properly."

She whimpered softly and Roxas helped her up. You stood up along with them. "Where should we take her?" he asked,

"Gummi Ship," Sora stated. "We can care for her better there, and if she doesn't wake up then, we can take her to a world that has some sort of hospital. Doctors can probably help her now better than us."

You nodded blankly and exited the Altar of Naught, still carrying Maryx. Your friends had to jog to keep up with your brisk walk. "Slow down! You might hurt her!" Sora puffed. Instantly you slowed your pace and looked down to see if she was alright.

"Go as fast as you like, Riku," Roxas said, shooting Sora a quick glare. Nobody dared to state the obvious: Nothing much could damage her more.

Out the castle, around the skyscrapers, through the barren city. You went as quickly as you dared, glancing at Maryx every few steps to make sure that she was still breathing.

"Look out!" Sora yelled, pulling you back. You had been so focused on Maryx that you hadn't noticed a lone Dusk swaying right in front of you and reaching out a sleek silver knife-arm at her.

"Don't even try," you growled at it, fending it off haphazardly with one hand.

"I think we should've gone a different way," Roxas muttered as more appeared.

"Again?" Kairi sighed.

"Riku, put Maryx near that building so you can fight, we'll have to keep them away from her," Sora instructed, already drawing out the Keyblade.

You didn't think twice and placed Maryx at the foot of a tall building, then summoned Way To Dawn. "Kairi, guard her!" you said quickly. She nodded and ran to Maryx, and you joined Sora, Roxas, and Kaori to fight off the Nobodies.

"Kairi, watch out!" Roxas called. While fighting off all the Dusks trying to reach Maryx while she was vulnerable, Kairi had failed to noticed some of them gliding past her unnoticed, and one of them was now struggling to pick her up. Sora managed to reach them in time to strike them down.

After a _very_ long time, the Nobodies were gone. "I thought that would never end," Roxas panted, wiping his forehead.

"Where did they even come from?" you asked.

"Hey, Kaori, remember when Xemnas suddenly stopped fighting us and started muttering stuff and waving his hands in the air?"

"Yeah, I thought he was going insane! He was mumbling something about two thousand and something ducks."

"He must've said 'two thousand and something _Dusks',_ not ducks!" Roxas said, laughing a little.

"Ducks, dusks, what's the difference?" you said, even though you were grinning. "Let's just get out of here."

* * *

"Look at this, you guys," Kairi said, brushing away the jet-black hair from the right side of Maryx's head. A surprisingly large gash was there, and it was still bleeding somewhat. "I was wondering where she was bleeding from. She must've gotten this when that Nobody tried to pick her up; I think it had dropped her."

"Bloody empty shells," you mumbled, touching the wound gingerly.

"Hey! Ex-Nobody here!" Roxas protested.

"Sorry…It's not like they had a reason to try and pick her up anyway..."

Kairi shook her head at began to bandage the wound. "This means she hit her head pretty hard on the concrete. It'll probably be even longer before she wakes up now."

"_What_?" you yelled.

Kaori bit her lip and took Maryx's hand. "But she will wake up, right Kairi?"

She sighed and put the bandages away. "I honestly haven't a clue. I'm so sorry, Kaori."

"Hey, I know who can help us!" Sora said brightly, obviously trying to cheer Kaori up.

The idea struck you as soon as he said this. "Merlin!"

"Exactly! It shouldn't take that long to get there. And besides, there isn't much more we can do for her here, so why waste ti – I mean, why wait for her to recover when Merlin could help us straight away!"

"Two good ideas in one day, Sora." You smirked at your best friend. "It's gotta be a record."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

**Your POV**

_Darkness._

_ Black._

_ Nothingness. _

Blearily, you forced your eyes open. _'Where am I?_' you thought. You were in what seemed to be an eternal void, effortlessly floating in midair. Waving your arm about experimentally in front of your face, you were relieved to see that your eyes had already adjusted to the darkness.

No. Not darkness, like Kingdom Hearts light and darkness. It was just plain darkness, like night. So at least you were safe from anything evil.

"Never mind where I am," you muttered aloud. "_Why_ am I here?"

You leaned backwards so you were floating on your back and put your hands behind your head, mimicking one of Sora's favourite poses, as the memories flooded back. "Let's see...Kairi and Roxas were fighting off Nobodies, Sora and Kaori were fighting Xemnas near Memory Skyscraper, Riku and I were at the Altar of Naught. We made the keychain, he kissed me, then I attached it to my Keyblade."

"Oh, then the pain started. It was so horrible! Worse than anything I've ever felt. It was like my heart and my body was been torn apart _really_ slowly. Then Riku...that idiot, he could've been killed! Though it was a little comforting for him to be there..."

"Anyway, then I started to see black spots. And Riku said something, and I was really surprised. What was it?" You frowned and rubbed your forehead. "Damn it, I know it was something really important!"

Just then a sharp pain shot through your skull, and you clutched at the right side of your head. "What was _that_ for?" you grumbled. "Shit, that hurts..." You knew it would take a while for the pain to go away, so you took up the Sora-position again.

You stayed like that for a while, trying to remember what Riku had said. "Eh, it'll come to me soon enough. But man, I _hate_ it when I can't remember things like this! I swear, it seems so painfully obvious and yet I can't think of it."

"So, after he said whatever-it-was, I blacked out. Did I? Or...am I dead?"

**Riku's POV**

Poke. Poke. Poke.

"Sora, poking her arm isn't going to wake her up," Kaori said tiredly. She was sitting on a chair next to Maryx's bed on Roxas's lap, and Roxas had his arms around her. "Believe me, I tried."

"Yeah, I know," Sora sighed. He was sitting on the floor, with his back against the wall. Kairi was next to him, leaning on his shoulder. You were sitting on the edge of the bed, holding Maryx's hand. It had been five and a half hours since you had returned to the Gummi Ship, and four hours since the ship took off.

"How much longer 'til we arrive?" Roxas asked.

"Four and a half hours," you said tonelessly.

"Kairi? KAIRI?" Sora was saying frantically. You tore your eyes away from Maryx to see Kairi had passed out.

"What happened?"

"I don't know! She just blacked out!"

**Your POV**

_ "'We're sooooooooarin', flyyyyyyyyin', there's not a star in heeeeeaven that we can't reach...'"_

You continued to float/fly through the darkness, searching for some sort of way out. For some reason one of your hands felt really warm. There was still a dull ache in your head. "Man, I'm actually resorting to High School Musical...though if you think about it, it's not THAT bad..." You stopped for a moment and then continued, singing a different song.

"'_Wake me up inside, wake me up inside, call my name and save me from the dark. Bid my blood to run, before I come undone, save me from the no-thing I've be-come.' _Hah, nothing can beat Evanescence!"

For some time you tried to think of songs that applied to your situation, just to beat your boredom. Eventually though, you ran out of ideas, and you groaned in frustration. "How long have I been here?" you yelled. "Where's the damn exit sign? Or at least the fire escape!"

Somebody laughed softly, and you spun around to see who it was. "Who's there?" you called out, summoning you weapon.

The person laughed again. Cautiously, you made your weapon disappear. The laugh was too innocent, too kind, to belong to someone evil. "Who are you?" you asked again.

A small light flashed before your eyes and a pale girl appeared. She had light blonde hair, wore a simple sleeveless white dress, and had the clearest blue-grey eyes you had ever seen. "What's your name?" you asked.

"Namine," she said softly, with a sweet smile on her face.

"I'm–"

"Maryx, I know."

She looked so familiar, but you couldn't tell where you'd seen her before. "Have we met?" you asked curiously.

"In a way. I'm Kairi's Nobody. And I suppose you could call me a witch. I can restore memories, make new or false ones, and erase them too. Also, I can talk to people in your condition."

"A witch...you're Kairi's...Nobody?" You suddenly recalled the conversation with Kairi about bringing out Roxas. She had said, _'It was either that or draw Namine out of me, he can't do both, so we decided to bring out Roxas.'_ Back then, you were too surprised with finding out about Roxas to ask who Namine was. "She mentioned you once," you stated, "but she didn't say who you were."

"I know. You were surprised about the fact that Sora had a Nobody."

"Yeah. How did you know?"

"I was listening. Being one with Kairi, I hear everything you guys say."

"Stalker," you teased. "So, where the hell am I, Namine?"

She smiled and turned away. "It's a little complicated. Basically, you're on the brink of death."

"I'm _dead_?" you asked in horror.

"No, no!" she said hastily. "You're not dead. But you're not technically alive. You're inbetween."

You thought for a moment. "Like a Nobody?"

"Something like that," she giggled.

"So, what you're trying to say is, I'm unconscious?"

"No...well you are...but...it's hard to explain. But your life is slowly draining away. You have a choice, Maryx. When the time comes, you can choose either to awaken, or to stay. If you don't wake up, you'll leave this place anyway and you will die."

You shuddered a little at this. "You're pretty good at breaking bad news that no one wants to hear, you know?"

"Yes, Roxas once said something similar to me," she smiled.

"How do I wake up, then?" you asked eagerly. "I'm not just going to give up and die!"

"Right now, your friends are flying to Radiant Gardens. They're going to go see Merlin and ask him if he knows a way to cure you. He does know a way, and that's when you'll have to make the choice."

"What choice?" you exclaimed. "Of course I'm going to choose to live. Why wouldn't I?"

"I was hoping you'd say that." She extended her hand and you took it warily, not sure of what was happening.

When you took her it, she made a white portal with her other hand and guided you through it. On the other end you gasped as you realized you were floating above your real self lying on your bed in the Gummi Ship. Kaori was sitting on Roxas's lap in a chair near your bed, and they were craning their necks to look at something on the other side of it. You turned your head and saw Sora leaning over an unconscious Kairi, desperately trying to shake her awake. Riku was there too, sitting on the edge of the bed and saying something to Sora. For some reason, you couldn't hear anything. "Why can't I hear them?" you asked Namine, who was hovering next to you.

"I'm not sure," she frowned. She closed her eyes to concentrate, and when she opened them you could hear them.

_ "Sora, don't shake her like that, you might hurt her,"_ Riku was saying. He sounded worn out.

"She's blacked out because you're here with me, right?" you questioned, and Namine nodded. "You should go back then! They look really worried."

"They look like that, because they're worried about you too."

You noticed that Riku was holding your hand, quite tightly as well. "So _that's_ why my hand's feeling warm," you said, almost relieved. "I thought something was going wrong with it!" Then you saw the bandage around your head. "And that's why my freakin' head hurts. Did I get hit by something?"

"Yes. They were taking you back to the Gummi Ship when Nobodies fought them. Riku had to put you down and fight, and Kairi was guarding you. Some Nobodies slipped past her and tried to pick you up and dropped you, and you hit your head on the concrete."

"Pfft, and I'm not even that heavy," you scoffed. "Let me guess, I could've woken up without Merlin's help if that hadn't happened."

"Yes."

"Joy..." Below you, Sora had laid Kairi on the ground, so that her head was resting on his legs. He was saying something to Roxas, but you weren't paying attention. "Listen Namine, couldn't you at least go back for a minute or so and send some sort of telepathic message to Kairi saying that she's blacking out because you're with me, and then come back? Seriously, they look really concerned about her."

She smirked a little, although on her it just made her look sweeter. "And then they can pay more attention to you," she joked.

You smirked back at her. "Exactly."

"Well, if it concerns you that much, I suppose I could. But it will take me a while to come back."

"No problem," you said cheerfully. "Any company would be great. Can I stay here?"

"I'm afraid not. You'll have to go back to where you were before." She smiled regretfully, slowly starting to disappear. "Namine, wait!" you called out suddenly. She stopped fading and looked at you in question. "Before I forget, Riku said something to me before I came here. Do you have any idea what it was? Or could you help me remember?"

She shook her head and continued disappearing. "I think he'd prefer to tell you himself," she said, then she was gone. The scenery around you changed back into the black place. "What could it have been?" you wondered.

**Riku's POV**

You had tuned out completely to Roxas and Sora's conversation. Not that you weren't concerned over Kairi; it was just that you felt there was a reasonable explanation, and she would probably wake up. All in all, there wasn't that much of a reason to get so worked up. _'Though if it were me and Ryx in Sora and Kairi's place, I guess I'd feel the same way,'_ you thought, looking down at your hand that was still clutching Maryx's.

"Hey, I think she's waking up!" Sora declared. You looked up and saw Kairi stirring on the ground. Soon she was sitting up at rubbing her head. "Namine..." she murmured.

"Namine?" Roxas repeated. "What about her?"

"Who is she?" Kaori asked.

"Kairi's Nobody," you all responded in unison.

"She...she just talked to me," Kairi said.

"What did she say?" Sora asked.

"She said I blacked out because she left my body to be with Maryx."

"_What?_" you exclaimed.

"She said Maryx is in a different place, and she went to her so that she could show her a way out. I'm conscious now because Namine came back. She said Maryx told her to come back, since you guys seemed worried about me."

You shook your head as you tried to take this all in. "Wait, so Maryx is here now?"

Kairi seemed to be thinking hard. "She was here," she said slowly, "but now she's not. Also, we can't contact her in any way."

"Damn it!" You were oblivious to the fact that you were squeezing Maryx's hand much harder in your anger.

"She said Maryx can feel any pain or comfort that she gets here, like her hitting her head and you holding her hand, Riku. Speaking of which, you're probably hurting her right now." Instantly you loosened your vice-like grip. "And she's leaving again, actually as soon as I'm done telling you this. She's going back to keep Maryx company, because...it's lonely...there..." Almost as soon as she said this she blacked out again.

Sora looked worried as he caught her when she fell backwards. "Well...at least that's the only reason why she's blacking out."

"What did I tell you?" you said, managing a small smile. "She's fine. And Namine wouldn't do this if it was hurting Kairi. Don't worry, Sora."

"What happened?" Leon asked seriously, crossing over from the computer to the entrance of Merlin's house, where you were holding Maryx. His expression deepened when he saw Sora walk in holding Kairi. "Did you get attacked?"

"No," you responded, "actually, we finished the mission."

"Kairi's unconscious because Namine is with Maryx right now," Sora interrupted. You vaguely remembered that Sora had told Leon all about Namine and Roxas the first time you had come to Radiant Gardens with Maryx, while Yuffie was showing her around.

Now Leon looked purely confused. "Alright...she's with Maryx...who's in this room now, unconscious..."

"Namine isn't _here_," Kairi corrected. She filled Leon in on what happened. "And that's why we need Merlin.

"Hmm..an interesting dilemma indeed," a voice mumbled. "Now, come in, come in, you must be tired from carrying those two."

"You were listening the whole time, weren't you?" Sora asked Merlin, who had just appeared. He set Kairi down on the ground near the centre of the room. You did the same with Maryx.

"Well of course, my boy," he said cheerfully. "I was here the whole time. None of you would ever notice an old wizard like me!"

Leon shook his head and turned up his mouth into something that very nearly resembled a smile. "Merlin, you know you were invisible."

The wizard crouched down to examine Maryx. "Details, details."

"By the way, Merlin, this is Roxas and Kaori," Sora said.

"Based on what Namine said, I can easily bring Maryx back for you," Merlin said.

A surge of hope ran through you. "You can? Do it, then!"

"Hold your horses," he chuckled. "Now, stand back, it's been a while since I've brought someone back from this state."

"You know what you're doing, right?" you said threateningly.

"Why, certainly? How on earth could you doubt me?"

"He did _not_ just ask that," Leon muttered.

**Your POV**

"He did _not_ just ask that," you muttered with Leon.

Namine giggled next to you. For someone so quiet, Namine was really good company. Mostly you had killed time alternating between talking to her and watching the others in the 'real world'. You didn't do that for long then, since watching Kaori and Riku being so distressed made you feel sad. "That is one big book," you commented as you watched Merlin pull out a gigantic book of spells and a glowing, super-sharp wand.

"I should warn you Maryx, this will sting quite a bit," Namine said.

"What else is new?" you sighed. Merlin began reading some nonsense that you couldn't comprehend at all. "I better go now Maryx," Namine said. "I've stayed far too long as it is."

"Why didn't you say so?" You hugged her and withdrew quickly. "You don't seem like the type to hug," she said, laughing.

"I'm not, you're just huggable," you smiled. "It was great to meet you."

"Bye Maryx." She stared fading like she had the first time. "By the way, you can stay here and watch this time."

"Really? Why?" Before you could say more she had already left. "Bye Namine," you said softly, even though she couldn't hear.

Merlin's voice grew louder, and the gibberish became more complicated. "I summon thee BACK!" he said finally.

"OW! Damn, that thing is sharp!" you exclaimed as he whacked your real self on the head hard with his wand, and you felt the blow clearly. Below you, a speck of blood formed on your real self's forehead. You touched your forehead gingerly and saw a small drop of blood on your finger.

Your hand started to fade in front of you, and a stinging sensation overwhelmed you, though it was nothing compared to what you had felt back on the Altar of Naught. '_Guess this is it,'_ you thought.

Your surroundings started to waver and soon became a big blur. Then everything went black again.


	22. Million Dollars Or ManEating Tiger?

**RECAP:**

Merlin's voice grew louder, and the gibberish became more complicated. "I summon thee BACK!" he said finally.

"OW! Damn, that thing is sharp!" you exclaimed as he whacked your real self on the head hard with his wand, and you felt the blow clearly. Below you, a speck of blood formed on your real self's forehead. You touched your forehead gingerly and saw a small drop of blood on your finger.

Your hand started to fade in front of you, and a stinging sensation overwhelmed you, though it wasn't even close to what you had felt back on the Altar of Naught. 'Guess this is it,' you thought.

Your surroundings started to waver and soon became a big blur. Then everything went black again.

**STORY STARTS:**

'_So __this __is what being Doctor Who would feel like,_' you thought as you were diving down at a freakishly fast rate. Kaori had been a total fanatic of Doctor Who, and used to make you watch endless hours of the show. The only vaguely interesting part was when he'd travel back and forth. This felt a little bit like that, except instead of space it was a black vortex.

You landed with a thud on a platform. Groaning, you staggered up and looked around. Once again, everything was black, but this time you were standing on a stained glass floor. It turned out that the image on the floor was one of Sora, except he was about a year or so younger. "Brilliant, now I'm stuck in a place with a giant picture of Sora below me," you muttered, absent mindedly kicking at Sora's head painted on the glass. "It's like being around him times five."

In front of you, two doors appeared, one white and one black. "_Choose,"_ a voice said.

"Is there a million dollars behind one door and a man-eating tiger behind the other?" you asked in fake-excitement.

_ "You know the answer."_

"Let me guess, this is such a cliché moment that the white door leads to life, and the black door leads to nothingness?" you stated, crossing your arms.

_ "Just choose one,"_ the voice snapped. You smirked, knowing that you had irritated the disembodied voice, and took your time selecting a door, even though you knew which one you were going to choose.

After a while, you reached out a hand to pull open the blindingly white door when the voice rang out again. _"Are you truly satisfied with your choice?"_ it said.

"Well, obviously," you rolled your eyes.

_ "Listen to your heart."_

"Right…because my heart gained the ability to talk overnight…"

"_Listen._"

Sighing, you shut your eyes and tried to focus on your inner being. Pretty much all you could hear was your own heartbeat. "It's not saying anything," you commented, "maybe it's tongue-tied?"

A second later a powerful blast had knocked you to the ground. "Someone's temperamental," you muttered, pushing yourself back up.

"_One door leads to life. In life, you've suffered many hardships, and few more will come your way. The other leads to death, but in choosing that door you will be able to protect the ones you love from the next life; see that no danger will come to them. And, you will be reunited with those you have lost."_

"Those I have lost?" you repeated, forgetting your I-don't-give-a-crap attitude. Ryu, your parents, your older brother, your old friends. "I can see them again?"

_ "You can be with them, for all eternity."_

"But I'll lose Kaori again."

"_You can always see what she's doing from where you will be."_

You tried to 'listen' to your heart once more, and for some reason you felt drawn to the other door. "This one. My heart wants me to be with 'the ones I've lost'." you said, facing the black door. "But if I go through this door, I won't see Riku and Kaori and Sora and Kairi and Roxas again until they die. I can be with the rest of my family again...but will Kaori and the others understand? How can I just leave them like that without even saying goodbye?"

_ "I did not say that this door leads to death,"_ the voice replied.

"Well…it's a black door…they usually lead to bad things in movies and stuff…like, it's the door to darkness or something…"

_ "This door lead to life. The black is for the difficulties that you had to endure, and the burdens that came your way. The other is white because it symbolizes the next life, where you can feel no pain." _You gazed at the door before laying a hand on the handle. "_You're friends are waiting. Are you truly satisfied with your decision?"_

Without answering, you nervously took a deep breath and pulled open the door, and you were greeting by warm, inviting light that drew you in. The door slammed shut behind you.

* * *

_ 'Bloody hell, who hit me on the head with an iron hammer?'_ you thought as a sharp pain filled your skull.

"It's not working, Merlin!" a girl was saying.

"Give here time, she's deciding whether she should come back or not," someone else said.

"Deciding? Why does she need to decide?" a guy demanded.

"Typical, I wouldn't have this damn headache if I'd gone through that other door," you muttered, rubbing your head and wincing when you pulled your hand across the cut from Merlin's wand. You opened your eyes to see people leaning over you. "Whoa, four Kaoris…"

"Ryx!" Kaori screamed. She yanked you upright and hugged you so tightly that you practically felt your ribs digging into your insides. "Kaori…can't…breathe!" you gasped as she knocked the wind out of you. Nearby you saw Merlin helping Kairi up, who had regained consciousness.

"Geez Maryx, we thought we lost you!" Roxas cheered, slapping your back hard enough to make you winded again.

"Maryx, how many fingers am I holding up?" Kairi asked gently, holding up her hand.

Squinting and hugging Kaori again, you replied, "Um...twelve?"

"Merlin! She can't count anymore!" Sora declared.

"My boy, that means she's dizzy, not that she can't count," Merlin informed him. After Roxas pried you and Kaori apart, the wizard knelt down to your eye level. "How are you feeling, Maryx?"

"Just dizzy, like you said. And my head hurts." Unexpectedly you hugged him briefly and said, "Thanks so much for bring me back, Merlin."

"Why, you're very welcome!"

"Man, she hit her head harder than we thought," Roxas laughed.

"Very funny! Don't say anymore: I might die again from laughing," you said sarcastically.

"Aaaand she's back," Sora grinned.

A few minutes passed, and everybody was still talking and laughing with you, saying how worried they had been and how good it was to have you back and how Kairi had told them about Namine. As your head started to clear you realized someone was missing. You managed to see past everyone and saw Riku hovering a little behind them. Although, to you it still seemed like there were two of him. "We'll give you two some time alone," Leon said gruffly from the other end of the room, and tugged Sora and Kairi away.

"Awww…" Kaori pouted but left anyway.

When the room was empty Riku crossed over to you and pulled you into a swift hug. "God, Ryx, don't ever scare me like that again, alright?" he said, his voice muffled in your hair.

"I promise," you murmured, pulling away slightly to kiss him.

"_Awwwwwwwww!"_someone said.

"Yuffie! Get out!" you yelled.

The 'great ninja' laughed hysterically as she flung herself out the window, while Riku just shook his head.

"I didn't even see her before," you said to yourself.

"'Before'?" he repeated.

"Oh, when I was in that in-between place; I thought Namine told you about that?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot…"

_ 'Why does he seem so uncomfortable?'_ you wondered.

**Riku's POV**

_'WHY WON'T SHE SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THE "I LOVE YOU"?'_

**Your POV**

"You okay?" you asked.

He laughed a little and took your hand. "You're the one who nearly died and you're asking me if _I'm_ okay?"

"You seem nervous," you frowned, "and you were so worried when I was unconscious. Is something wrong?"

"Of course I was worried! I thought you were going to die!" he exclaimed, kissing you quickly when he saw that you were going to interrupt. "Don't worry, there's _nothing_ wrong."

Normally you would've pressed further, but you were still dizzy and could barely think straight. "I guess…if you say so," you said doubtfully, and he smiled.

"Oh! That's what I wanted to ask you!" you said suddenly, making him jump.

"Wh-what is it?" he said tensely.

You frowned again at his tone, but carried on, "Um, before I blacked out, what were you saying, exactly?"

'_Is he blushing?'_ you thought in amazement. '_Hell, he must've said something important…'_

"What was I saying? What sort of a question's that?" he asked, and he seemed like he was almost angry.

"Well I didn't-"

"Doesn't it mean anything to you? I never said that to anyone and you just brush it off?"

"No, I can't remem-"

"Was it too soon or something? Are you not ready for that kind of relationship?"

"Riku, the Nobodies made me forget wha-"

"How else can I say it? I love you! What, you wanted it in another language?"

Speechless, your jaw dropped in shock. He kept talking, saying something about yelling from rooftops like Yuffie, but you weren't listening. "You love me?" you managed finally, stopping him in mid-rant.

**A/N: Because I got quite a few messages from people over the past two weeks (and only like, ONE comment lol) and since one of my friends kept nagging me, I posted this even though I haven't finished writing it ;) So instead of this being one, long chapter like normal, I'll continue it in Chapter 23. And sorry if Riku seems OOC, I was so tired when I wrote this :D Don't forget to vote and comment!**


	23. The Perfect Moment

**A/N: LAST CHAPTER! :'( Btw, yes, there IS a reference to Demyx Time 15 in here!**

**RECAP:**

"What was I saying? What sort of a question's that?" he asked, and he seemed like he was almost angry.

"Well I didn't-"

"Doesn't it mean anything to you? I never said that to anyone and you just brush it off?"

"No, I can't remem-"

"Was it too soon or something? Are you not ready for that kind of relationship?"

"Riku, the Nobodies made me forget wha-"

"How else can I say it? I love you! What, you wanted it in another language?"

Speechless, your jaw dropped in shock. He kept talking, saying something about yelling from rooftops like Yuffie, but you weren't listening. "You love me?" you managed finally, stopping him in mid-rant.

**STORY STARTS:**

"What?"

"You love me? Th-that's what you said?"

That silenced him and he realized what you were saying. "Oh…you…couldn't remember…"

_ 'Holy...When was the last time anyone said that to me?'_

"Ryx?" he ventured after a moment. "Say something?"

"You thought I didn't care," you said.

"Well…yeah, I didn't even think that you couldn't remember." Another awkward moment passed. "So…do you...?"

Four and a half minutes. That's how long you made out with him for when you cut him off from what he was going to say.

"What do you think?" you asked, when you finally pulled back, panting.

"I think that you enjoy leading me on, and that you did that so it would hurt even more when you say that you don't love me and that its way to soon, and that we should end this right now because you can't deal with that sort of relationship, and that we can't even be friends if I have those sort of feelings for you, and–"

You started laughing; how could you not? "What's so funny?" he asked, looking annoyed and worried at the same time.

"That's the second time you've ranted in one day," you said between laughs. "I've never heard you ranting before!"

He blushed as he tried to regain his composure. "Of course I love you, Riku," you said, finally calming down. "I've never felt this way about _anyone_ before. And I really, _really_ love you."

Sighing with relief, he hugged you closer. "I love you too. With all my heart."

You felt so safe, so secure in his warm arms; you wished you could hold on forever, feeling the love you had for each other practically radiating off of you. '_He loves me!' you thought. 'He actually loves me! And we actually had a perfect moment without any interruptions!'_

Out of nowhere you heard a thump from outside. You and Riku looked up from your embrace to see what was happening. '_Aaaand, there's the interruption...'_

"They said it!" you could hear Sora and Kaori declaring. "They finally said it!"

"I _knew_they would be eavesdropping," Riku groaned.

"I tried to warn you, but you didn't seem so happy to see me!" someone said.

You turned your head without letting go of Riku. "YUFFIE! How the hell did you get back in here?"

She laughed mischievously. "I keep telling you, I'm the GREAT ninja Yuffie!"

"'Ninja' is right. 'Great', not so much."

"GIRL is that a challenge?"

"Don't do it Ryx, spare her life!" Riku said, fake-pleading.

"I bet you ten munny she's gonna kick Yuffie's ass in there right now," you heard Roxas saying.

"You're on," Leon replied.

"ALRIGHT, there will be no fighting in my home!" Merlin burst into the house where you and Riku were in the middle of the room, while Yuffie was standing near the window. "Yuffie, out!"

She pouted like a child. "Awww, why me and not Maryx?"

"OUT!" Merlin and Leon yelled. The great ninja sighed exaggeratedly and lifted one leg over the windowsill. "Out the DOOR!"

"Okay, okay! Sheesh, what does it matter which way I leave?" Yuffie grumbled as she stomped outside.

"You've _got_ to put a lock on that window, Merlin," you mused.

"Can you let go of each other now? You're not going to fall through the floor if you're not hanging on to him, Ryx!" Kaori said.

"Spoilsport," you mumbled, letting go but still holding his hand.

"Man! Anyone would think you guys wanted privacy or something, the way you're acting!" Sora said, putting his hands behind his head.

Riku facepalmed.

* * *

"Hey, we need to talk about something," Riku said

"Okay," you replied. _ 'I'm telling you, they've got a camera in the room,'_ you wrote on a piece of paper in your room at Merlin's house. Your room also belonged to Kaori and Kairi, while Riku, Sora, and Roxas were sharing another room, because Merlin only had two to spare. Luckily, they were big ones.

'_Fine, let's try one more time,'_ Riku wrote back. He gave you a chance to read his message then leaned down and planted his lips on yours.

Less than a minute later someone knocked on the door. "See?" you said, as you reluctantly broke apart.

"It's open," Riku called, nuzzling your neck.

Roxas opened the door holding his sketchbook. "Maryx, Kaori wants to know if she left her sketchbook here!"

"No, she didn't. Can you get lost now?" Riku sighed as he looked up for a moment before kissing his way along your jawline.

"But did she leave her pencils in here?"

"No," you said, entangling your fingers in Riku's hair.

"What about her–"

"No."

"Or the–"

"No."

"Face it, he's not leaving," Riku pointed out, so you started making out again.

"Ugh, get a room," Sora groaned, showing up next to Roxas.

Twitching a little, you replied, "We have a room, you just happen to be in it for a reason that better be good, otherwise there's gonna be a replay of last month."

"What happened last month?" Roxas asked instantly.

"A little incident involving a game, a baseball bat, and a kitchen knife," Sora answered, shuddering, then held up a scroll. "The King summoned us to his castle so we can give him a briefing of the mission and instructions on what's next."

"What's next?" Riku repeated. "We have another mission?"

He frowned and unrolled the scroll, making a face. "He doesn't say. He just said to go to the castle as–"

"'As soon as we can'," you, Riku, and Roxas chorused, having heard the same words from him many times.

"Well, I guess it doesn't really make a difference how fast we get there, because we have to take Maryx back anyway." Sora looked a little sad as he said this.

You didn't speak for a moment, stunned that you had forgotten that you had to go back to the castle. Actually, you didn't see the point of going back; of course you owed the King a _lot_ for saving you from Xehanort's Heartless, you knew that. But he didn't even need you anymore, right?

"Don't look so sad, Maryx!" Roxas said, trying to cheer you up, even though he looked put out by this news as well. "At least we can go visit you and Kaori there sometimes! It won't be easy; we can see you guys every months."

What he said didn't help at all. "Every few _months_?" you echoed.

"That's what I needed to talk to you about," Riku said to you, glaring at Roxas.

**Riku's POV**

'_Dammit, Roxas! I was already going to bring that up while we were alone, why did you have to have to mention it?'_ you thought in annoyance.

"What about you, Roxas?" Maryx asked, obviously trying to change the subject. "Where are you going to stay? Are you going to become one with Sora again?"

Sora and Roxas grinned in unison. "He's going to live with me!" Sora declared.

"Seriously? You're going to live on Destiny Islands?" you repeated. '_Not that it makes up for Ryx living in a different world, but that's still pretty cool.'_

"I still have to ask my parents about it, but they won't mind!" Sora said. "They already know about him; I told them all about him when we came back."

"That's awesome!" you exclaimed.

"Yeah, that's great!" Maryx added.

Roxas opened his mouth to add something, but before he could say anything you heard screams coming from the main room. "SORA! ROXAS! WE'RE GONNA KILL YOU!"

The two looked startled and then bolted out of the room like lightning. Moments later Kaori and Kairi came running down the hallway, clutching what looked like...tie-dyed underwear?

"Now _this_ I want to see!" Ryx said, grinning evilly. You both went out of the room to watch the unfolding drama, secretly relieved that the previous topic had been put off. '_Seriously, I need to talk to her about this..."_

**Your POV**

"I really feel sorry for you two," you said sympathetically, as Sora and Roxas lay on their beds, moaning. You were searching for a potion in their drawers.

"What? You feel sorry for us?" Sora said.

"Well yeah, it's pretty saddening to see you like this. Mind you, if you had pulled that prank on me, you would've been writhing on the floor."

Basically, what happened was that Sora and Roxas and somehow stolen Kairi and Kaori's bras and underwear, and managed to tie-dye them fluorescent orange and green while the girls were out with Aerith and Yuffie.

"And that's exactly why we _didn't_ do it to you," Roxas said.

"We _were_ going to try it out on Yuffie, but she would've come up with a totally evil-genius prank for revenge. We knew Kairi and Kaori would just try to beat us up," Sora told you.

"Aw, you guys really _do_ have common sense!" you said, straightening up when you finally found the potion. "Though maybe 'try' isn't the right word; they seem to have beaten you up pretty good. But please tell me that dye washes out?"

They looked at each other and smirked. "Nope!" they replied.

"You scare me sometimes," you laughed.

"Oh don't worry, when we prank you, it'll be something you'll never expect to come from us!"

"I'd like to see you try. For one thing, you'd _never_be able to prank me and get away with it. And I'm not even going to be around for much longer; I have to go back to the castle, remember?"

They both fell silent, and seemed to be thinking about that as they drank the potion. "HEY!" Sora suddenly yelled, nearly making Roxas choke on the potion and you fall out of your chair. "Bloody hell, stop doing that," you sighed, putting your hand over your heart.

"Why don't you and Kaori just move to the islands?" Sora exclaimed. "Like Roxas! You could stay with Kairi!"

"With Kairi? Isn't her foster dad the mayor or something?"

"Well then, you could stay with Riku!" Roxas stated, suddenly looking excited. "He won't mind at all!"

"Uh...his parents might have a problem with a random girl they've never met and her sister moving in with them..."

"That's true, they're pretty uptight," Sora agreed.

"They might agree with it for the girl that he _loooooves_," he reminded you, laughing. You tried not to let an idiotic grin spread across your face. Though you wouldn't admit it to them, it was absolutely killing you inside that you had to be separated from Riku by such a huge distance, and for so long.

Sora started making love-sick faces. "_I've never felt this way about anyone before_," he mimicked, causing Roxas to crack up.

You whacked him hard in the face. "Don't ever mimic me," you glared. "Anyway, I was talking about it with him about it, while Kairi and Kaori were busy pummelling you to death, and he said –"

"That his parents are too strict and that they'll never allow it," Sora interrupted. "They're always like that." You hit him on the head again. "That _is_ what he said, but don't interrupt me!" Actually you'd also talked about living with Kairi, and you were going to ask her, as soon as she came back from her shower...

"Hey, stop hitting me, I just healed!" Sora whined, stopping your train of thought.

"You're such a baby!"

"So why don't you ask her?"

"Ask a baby?"

"No, ask Kairi if you could move in with her! Trust me, the mayor's house is huge, and he'd do anything for Kairi, he'd definitely let you stay!"

Kairi walked in at that moment; her hair was so wet that the water was dripping off it and partially soaking her white top. "Who'd do anything for me?" Kairi asked.

"The mayor, apparently," you said.

"Hey, Kairi! Your bra looks a little...bright," Sora pointed out, struggling to keep a straight face.

"Oh, you boys are such...such...meanies!" she yelled.

"Sheesh, Kairi, try to come up with better insults," you said, amused. "I should teach you a few."

"Don't try and change the subject!" Roxas said. "Just ask her!"

Kairi smiled at you. "Ask me what?"

"Can Maryx and Kaori live with you?" Sora blurted out.

"Live with me?" she repeated incredulously.

You rubbed the back of your neck awkwardly. "Yeah, I was going to ask you about it when we had some privacy," you said nervously, while shooting Sora another glare.

"Why? Of course you guys can live with me!"

"Really?" you said hopefully.

"Maryx, you don't even have to ask," she laughed, "there's plenty of room for you two! Oh, this is going to be so awesome, it'll be like a sleepover every night. And this means you'll be going to the same school as us too! Wakka and Tidus and Selphie will be so excited to meet you...We should start packing your stuff right now!" With that she pulled you out of the room babbling endlessly, leaving Sora and Roxas practically falling off their beds laughing at the horrified look on your face when she mentioned painting your room pink.

Riku and Kaori passed by you in the hallway, and Riku raised his eyebrows as Kairi pushed past him, dragging you along with her. "And you'll love the school uniform!" she went on, not noticing that you weren't listening.

"What school uniform?" Riku asked.

"Destiny Island High School," you announced. "Me and Kaori are moving in with Kairi!"

Riku's eyes went wide and Kaori gasped. "Are you serious?" Riku asked incredulously, grinning.

"As serious as Leon's face," you confirmed.

"Holy – Kairi, did I ever tell you that you're the most awesome person ever?" Riku asked, hugging her.

"Hey, what about me?" you said in fake-annoyance. "Aren't I awesome?"

He smiled and let go of Kairi, holding you and looking you straight in the eyes. "Of course you are," he said. "You're awesome, beautiful, amazing...and I love you."

**THE END**

**A/N: Well, that was a sucky ending for you! Haha. Thanks sooo much for everyone who's followed this story, and to those who voted for it! Soon I'm going to post an Axel fanfic, 'Fire In The Streets'. Thanks again, and don't hesitate to comment if you think the ending can be better, or if you want an epilogue! :D**


	24. Epilogue

**A/N: I'm NOT a Rinoa-hater or a Stella-hater, in fact I think they're awesome! And they're definitely very OOC here. But I needed bad guys (make that girls) for this epilogue. Sorry, to everyone who have been waiting me to post this, for taking so long! :-)**

"So?" Kairi asked, putting down the magazine she'd been flipping through.

"So...what?" You glanced at the changing rooms where Kaori and Selphie were trying on dresses. That's right, those three had dragged you into one of the things you hated most: _shopping_.

She grinned excitedly and clapped her hands. "What are you two doing for your anniversary tonight?"

You couldn't help but smile back. "He says it's a surprise."

"What's a surprise?!" Selphie's voice came from inside a changing room. "Speak louder, you guys!"

"Yeah, speak louder! We can't hear what you're saying!" Kaori echoed.

Kairi caught a rejected dress that Selphie tossed over the door. "Maryx says she doesn't know what she and Riku and doing for their anniversary, because he's planning a surprise!"

"Awww, that's so romantic!" Selphie sighed.

"Selphie, you find _everything_ romantic," Kaori laughed.

"I can't believe it's been four years already," Kairi said. "It feels like just yesterday when we were sitting around the Gummi Ship, with you complaining about what a douche bag Riku was being."

"I never called him a douche bag!" you protested.

"Oh, yes you did. Many, many times."

"Okay, maybe I did..."

"Well, you're too old to call him that now - twenty year olds can't do that sort of thing," Kaori teased.

"Pfft, sure we can!" you laughed.

"I still can't believe you hated each other, and then you fell in love!" Selphie sighed, walking out of the dressing room with a pile of clothes in her arms. "It's a –"

"'Classic love story', and 'it should be studied in high school instead of Romeo and Juliet', and 'it beats _Titanic_ any day'," you finished for her, having heard this mantra from her before. Kaori laughed as she came out from her dressing room. As Kairi paid for the clothes Selphie carried on talking about the most recent romance movie she'd seen. In your opinion, it sounded exactly like all the others she loved.

After coming to Destiny Islands, your view on life had changed a lot. Being in a peaceful world with your sister, great friends, and an amazing boyfriend had definitely had an impact on you. Of course, you wished your parents could be here too, and Ryu and your best friends. But after the whole near-death incident in your 'in-between coma', you knew you'd see them again in another life. So for now, you had focused on making the best of life, and, thanks to Riku, you had learned to trust people again.

All this had also changed your attitude. Out of habit, you still made sarcastic comments quite often, but your bitter attitude had faded completely. Well, almost. Now you were in your second year at Destiny Islands College studying to be a guidance counselor, while Riku was studying marine biology.

And, yes, Kaori and Roxas were still going out.

"NOW LET'S GO GET SHOES!" Selphie suddenly yelled, running out of the store, pulling Kaori along with her.

You groaned and looked at Kairi pleadingly. "Do I _have_ to be here?"

"Hey, if you go, I'll be stuck with those two shopaholics by myself!" she said as you left the store.

After searching for a while, you eventually found Selphie and Kaori in a shoe store on the other side of the mall. Goodness knows how they got there so fast. "KAIRI! Check these out!" Selphie said, pulling Kairi with her to a stand. You gave her a sympathetic look and went to join Kaori, but just then your phone rang. Pulling it out of your pocket, you answered it without looking at the caller ID. "Hello?"

"MARYX! RIKU'S PLANNING ON TAKING YOU TO TH–" A door slammed and you heard the phone drop to the ground._ Thud_. "DON'T TELL HER, TIDUS!" you heard Sora and Roxas yelling. You smiled to yourself and rolled your eyes as you heard them fighting in the background, then someone picked up the phone again. "Hey Maryx, whatever Tidus said, forget about it, ya?" Wakka said.

"All he said was 'Maryx, Riku's planning on taking you to the-' So what's the big secret?" you asked lightly.

"Ah, I can't tell you that," he said.

"Yes you can!"

"a) I promised Riku I wouldn't, and b) it would ruin the surprise! You don't want that, do you?"

You sighed and shook your head, forgetting that he couldn't see you. "Whatever it is, it better not involve me being in the sea," you laughed. Despite being incredibly athletic, you absolutely hated swimming. You couldn't explain it, you just didn't like being in water.

"He wants it to be the perfect evening, so you don't need to worry," Wakka reassured you.

Over him, you could still hear Tidus yelling something about...invisible pick axes made of wood? "Um, you should go help Sora and Roxas shut him up, Wakka," you laughed.

"See you later, Maryx!

* * *

**Riku's POV**

You walked into Sora's living room. "Sora, have you seen my books with the –"

"She nearly found out! Don't do that again!" Sora was shouting, wrestling Tidus on the floor. Wakka was above them, holding Tidus's phone and trying to pry them off each other. Roxas was standing by, laughing.

"Who found out what?" you asked. When they ignored you, you jumped on top of them. "Dude! Get off me! You're so fat!" Tidus yelled.

'_Pfft, he wishes he had all of this!_' you thought as you rolled off, dusting off your shirt. "Did you tell Ryx something?" you demanded.

"She wanted to know what it was, but I didn't tell her, mon," Wakka added, tossing the phone on Tidus's head.

"Yeah, I stopped Tidus just in time," Sora declared, pounding his chest with his fist.

"_We_ did," Wakka corrected.

"I did!"

"We did!"

"All you did was talk on the phone, I had to deal with Tidus trying to claw my eyes out," Sora said importantly.

Someone knocked on the door, halting the conversation. "THAT'S THE PIZZA GUY!" Sora and Tidus yelled, leaping up and racing each other to the door. When they opened it, though, there was someone there who definitely didn't work for a pizza company.

"Hey Riku," the tall girl said, flipping her dark hair over her shoulder.

_'Not this again!' _

"Rinoa. Hi." Behind you, you heard Tidus, Sora, Roxas, and Wakka groaning in annoyance. None of you like Rinoa Heartilly. Why? For one, you and Tidus had both dated her during the first years of high school for a short time, and she had cheated on both of you. That was before you had realized that she was a bully and an all-around b*tch. Then, when she promised to change her ways, you gave her another chance. Yet not only did she cheat again, she also beat up one of your good friends, so you and all your friends decided not to have anything to do with her.

When you had returned to the islands four years ago with Ryx, Rinoa had thrown a fit and started yelling that Maryx was a tramp and a whore and she had stolen her boyfriend, even though you had only dated ages ago. Luckily, Ryx had no problem setting her straight.

To this day, Rinoa had never gotten over Maryx 'taking what was rightfully hers', and took every chance to flirt with you, trying to convince you that Ryx didn't deserve you. It never worked, but you were slightly surprised at how she'd kept up her insistence for so many years. Thankfully Ryx just found the whole thing amusing.

"Baby, why are you acting so cold?" she pouted, leaning against the left side of the doorway. You took a step back and turned so that your back was against the right side of the door frame.

"Why? Imma tell you why!" Tidus said from the living room.

"Its okay, Tidus," you said. "Rinoa, did you want something, or did you just come here to attempt to lure me away from my girlfriend?"

"Sweetie, I'd never try to break you to up! Not while you're so happy together," she sighed, trailing a hand along your arm, making you snatch it away. "Although I still don't understand why you can't see how..._unsuitable _she is for you." She took a step forward and gave you what she probably thought was a seductive smile. "There's far more chemistry between the two of us, don't you think?"

"No. Not at all."

She blinked a little then giggled and batted her eyes. "Aww, Riku, I love it when you play hard to get," she purred, playing with her hair.

"Oh, for crying out loud..." '_Has she actually convinced herself that I like her?' _you thought. "Look Rinoa, I know you don't want to admit, but I never loved you. I never even liked you; I only went out with you _five years ago _because I thought that you might change, but you're still the same. So go leech onto some other guy, because there's nothing between us, and there never will be. I'm in love with Maryx, and her only."

Her lips pursed and her eyes narrowed as she took this in. You could practically see the wheels turning in her brain as she tried to come up with a response. "You can't seriously believe that, Riku," she finally spat out.

"Well, I do. And nothing you or any of your little minions do or say can convince me otherwise."

"YEAH! You tell her, Riku!" Tidus and Sora cheered, still inside. Roxas and Wakka just smiled.

Rinoa sneered at them, and then turned back to you. "So, nothing will change your mind?"

You smirked and crossed your arms. "Is your head honestly that thick?"

She laughed humourlessly and flipped her hair again. "I'll tell you what, _Riku_," she said, "if you're sure that you're oh-so-in-love with that whore -"

"She's _not_ a whore, and her name is Maryx," you cut her off.

"Fine, if you think your love with _Maryx_ is sooo strong, you shouldn't feel anything at all if I kiss you right now, should you?"

"W-What?"

Without warning, she pressed herself against you and kissed you full on, her fingers holding onto your shoulders with a vice-like grip. It felt utterly disgusting, and you ended up grabbing her around the waist to push her away. "Well?" she asked, smiling innocently.

"Absolutely nothing. Rinoa, you must be disgustingly desperate to sink that low," you said. And that was the truth. In fact, just here mere presence made you feel sick. "Now. Get. Out."

She glanced over your shoulder and smirked triumphantly. "Oh well, some things weren't meant to be, I suppose," she sighed, not sounding upset or sorry at all. You raised your eyebrows questioningly as she flounced off.

"Dude, if she did that to me I would've thrown up all over her," Tidus shuddered.

"I knew she liked you, but I never thought she'd do that, mon," Wakka added.

"But you showed her!" Sora said cheerfully.

"Yeah...why didn't she seem disappointed?" you wondered.

"Ya, she looked happy that you turned her down," Roxas said thoughtfully.

As he said this, you turned around, remember how Rinoa had seen something over your shoulder. There you saw four figures, making their way towards you.

* * *

**Your POV**

"_I'm sick and tired of your attitude, I'm feeling like I don't know you, you tell me that you love me then you cut me down!" _ Selphie belted out, completely out of tune. You tried to ignore her as you walked along the beach to Sora's house.

"Selphie, PLEASE stop!" Kaori begged, covering her ears.

"NEVER!"

"Hey, what's Stella doing here?" Kairi said, pointing to the blonde girl nearby.

"The thief is approaching - I repeat, the thief is approaching," she was whispering into her phone.

"You don't need to use codenames for me, Stella," you said, smiling a little.

She jumped and hid her phone behind her back. "Oh hey, girls! And Maryx," she added, sneering.

"Why are you telling people we're 'approaching'?" Kaori asked.

"Well, if I told you, then I'd be giving away the plan, wouldn't I? And then we'd have to come up with another one, and I _so_ can't be bothered doing that, because I'm a procrastinator," Stella said proudly.

"Plan? What plan?" Selphie asked curiously.

"And since when do you know and say words longer than ten letters?" you added, wondering how 'procrastinator' entered her vocabulary.

"Don't be daft, Maryx, 'bothered' is only six letters," she said, like she was talking to a small child.

'_...Eight letters, Stella. Eight letters.'_

"How in the world did you get into college..." Kairi muttered.

"What plan?" Selphie repeated.

You rolled your eyes and said, "Don't worry, Selphie, it's probably just another one of those 'get-Riku-to-fall-in-love-Rinoa-and-make-him-dump-Maryx' plans."

Stella's eyes widened, but she quickly regained her composure. "We don't need to come up with plans like that!" she giggled. "Rinoa doesn't need a plan to make Riku like her. Besides, you'll going to want to break up with Riku soon anyway."

"You just said you're in the middle of a plan!" you said. "And why would I break up with Riku?"

She smiled gleefully at you. "Because Riku's cheating on you!" she squealed happily.

_"What?_" Kaori, Kairi, and Selphie exclaimed.

You sighed and readjusted the bags in your hands. "Let me guess: You and Rinoa have been waiting for me to show up, so that you can distract us while Rinoa forces herself onto Riku. Then at the right moment you'll let me see my boyfriend kissing her, and I'll be devastated and heartbroken and I'll break up with him on the spot. Am I right?"

"N-No! I-It's been going on for days...I mean, weeks! Yeah, it's been going on for weeks!" she said hastily, obviously trying to cover her tracks.

"Sure it has," you said dryly. "Nice try, though!"

"For one of Rinoa's half-hearted plans, that's actually pretty smart," Kairi laughed.

"It's not half-hearted! We've been planning for weeks!" Stella protested, then clapped her hand over her mouth.

"And again, how in the world did you get into college?" Kairi said.

You looked over Stella's shoulder just in time to see Riku standing in the doorway to Sora's house in the distance, pushing Rinoa away and looking sick with disgust. Rinoa stared over his shoulder and grinned sardonically at you from where she was, oblivious to the fact that you knew about the set-up. "Hah, Rinoa's going to kill you for giving it away if you two have really been plotting that long," you smirked.

"Oh, man..." Stella groaned as Rinoa approached.

"Maryx! I'm so sorry, I didn't know you were watching," Rinoa said, sounding too happy for someone who was 'sorry'. "Though I suppose you probably would've guessed sooner or later, wouldn't you? I mean, you _are_ a smart girl." She snarled as she said the last sentence.

"Too smart." her best friend murmured.

"What does that mean?" she asked her, confused.

"Um...I'll explain!" She dragged Rinoa away and pulled her into her house, slamming the door shut. A few seconds later you heard Rinoa shrieking angrily at her.

"I don't know whether to feel sorry for Stella, or sorry for Rinoa," Kaori mused.

Riku turned around, and you guessed that he thought _you_ thought the worst. "I better go tell him I don't think he's been cheating on me," you smiled, handing your bags to Kairi and running to Sora's house.

* * *

"OW!"

Riku laughed from somewhere by your side. "What's so amusing about me walking into a tree?" you moaned, rubbing your forehead.

"You could just read the energy levels around you and you won't walk into any more," he said while gently pulling you back onto the path...or what you assumed was the path.

"I told you - trees don't have energy levels!" you said as you began walking again, depending on Riku to steer you away from more trees.

"Don't worry Your Highness, the big bad trees won't planteth their way in thy path any longer!" he said valiantly.

You groaned in annoyance at the old nickname he'd started using four years ago and would've replied with a sarcastic comeback, but you were too excited about where you were going. More specifically, about _finding out_ where you were going.

"I still don't understand how you went around for months constantly wearing one of these," you sighed, reaching up with your free hand to feel the blindfold around your eyes.

Riku batted your hand away and laughed again. "We're not there yet!" You tripped over something and he caught you as you stumbled. "Oh, by the way, watch out for the roots," he added.

"I'll be sure to do that," you said dryly, but you were smiling.

"Okay, I won't let you fall again," he said, leading you onwards.

After a while Riku helped you climb up what seemed to be stairs. '_Where could we be going?_' you wondered. '_There aren't any places surrounded by trees around here with stairs...at least I don't think there are?'_

Soon he stopped walking. "Are we here?" you asked eagerly.

"Well, obviously we're here, where else would we be? Port Royal?"

"You know what I mean! Are we _there_?" you stressed, waving your arm around to gesture at...wherever you were.

"Of course not; we can't be there if we're over here."

"Riku!"

"Alright, alright," he chuckled, letting go of you. You felt his hands untying the blindfold and it fell away. Blinking a little to get used to the sudden change of light, your eyes widened at what you saw. "You did all this?" you gasped.

He wrapped his arms around you from behind and kissed your cheek. "Happy anniversary," he murmured.

It wasn't just an ordinary picnic. It looked absolutely beautiful. A dark purple cloth was laid across the wooden floor, and on it was your favourite food, silver cushions, and candles that softly lit the small room. '_Wait...where are we?_' You turned your head to look out a large opening in one wall, and you realized you were in some kind of treehouse. There was a magnificent view - the best you'd ever seen in this world. You could see all of the islands and the millions stars sprinkled across the sky. You could see every house, every building, every small, miniscule radiance that shone out through the dark shadows of the evening. And amidst the stars, you could see the moon shining serenely in the sky, its light flooding the room with a gentle glow.

"I know it's cliché, but I know you like cliché," he said, smiling at your stunned expression.

You turned around and hugged him tight. "It's...Riku, I can't believe you did all this just for me," you said, tilting your head up to lose yourself in those aqua eyes.

"You know I'd do anything for you," he replied, still smiling. But there was something in his eyes...was it...nervousness?

You didn't have time to think about it, because he was leading you across the room to sit down. "I found this place a few years ago, when I was exploring the island," he explained. "The steps blend in with the plants, so you could be walking by and not even notice them."

"But then how did you find them?" you asked.

He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "Heh...I tripped over them," he said, grinning sheepishly.

"It's nice to know I'm dating a klutz," you teased.

"Says she who face-planted on the first day of high school here," he laughed.

"You know that wasn't my fault! Rinoa tripped me!" you said, laughing as you remembered that moment. From the very second Rinoa found out you had 'replaced' her, she'd gone out of her way to make that day miserable. But you had gotten her back in art class...let's just say she had to buy a new uniform.

When you mentioned Rinoa's name, Riku sobered up a little. "Ryx, I know I already said this, but I'm really sorry about the thing this afternoon and -"

"Hey, you already apologized!" you said, poking him in the chest. "And it wasn't your fault. I almost thought you were going to throw up after she left!"

He shuddered and made a face. "I felt like it."

The rest of the evening seemed to fly by. The two of you finished the food in a flash, and spent most of the time talking and laughing. By then it was dark outside, and the moon was even brighter than before. "Hey, let's go for a walk, Ryx," Riku said suddenly, standing up and holding out his hand to you.

"Okay?" You grabbed his hand and he led you down the stairs. You could see what he had meant: even if it had been broad daylight, you probably never would've seen them.

Soon the two of you were walking along the beach, with his arm around your waist and your head resting on his shoulder. "You know, I thought Sora and Wakka were going to tear Tidus apart today, when he tried to tell you about what I was planning," Riku said.

"It sounded like Sora was doing that," you commented.

"Oh hey, look at that!" He pointed at something in the direction of the sea, letting go of you. You looked out over the water, trying to see what he had pointed at. "I don't see anything, Riku," you said, turning back around to face him. You gasped when you saw what he was doing.

He was down on one knee.

Holding a ring-box in his hand.

And smiling up at you, his eyes mixed with nervousness and love.

"Ryx, I love you so much, it hurts. I fell for you as soon as I met you, but I thought you'd never trust me. When I found out about all the things you'd been through, all I wanted to do was to make you feel better, to heal your heart, to make sure no one ever hurt you again. Then you nearly died, and I felt like my heart was being torn in two, because I'd made a promise to myself when I found out about your past, to never let you feel any pain like that again. I told you how I really felt about you, and then you were being ripped out of my arms."

"I never want to lose you again, Ryx, and I want to be by your side for the rest of my life. So..." He opened the box to reveal a gorgeous ring. "Maryx, will you marry me?"

Your hands were clapped around your mouth and tears were pouring down your cheeks, blown away at his beautiful words as they drove straight through to your heart, to be secured in a special place forever. After getting over your shock, your brain started working again and you nodded. "Yes," you managed to choke out, smiling as the tension in his eyes was replaced with relief. "Yes...Riku, of course I'll marry you."

He took your left hand and slid the sparkling ring onto your finger, then stood up and kissed you long and hard. "I love you, Ryx," he said, resting his forehead against yours.

You smiled as you pecked him on the lips one last time. "I love you to, Riku..."

"...with all my heart."

**A/N: Okay, THAT ^^^^^ is the official ending! *sobs* Now it's really over! :( I hope you all enjoyed it, and thanks so much to EVERYONE who's followed this story for so long, including the people who waited nearly three months for this epilogue (sorry!)!**


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